A seminar on the Corona pandemic and the new sports reality, held via video conferencing (Zoom), ended today, Tuesday the 27th of September 2021. The seminar was organised by the Sultanate and represented by its Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth in coordination with the General Secretariat of the Council of Arab Youth and Sports Ministers, from the 27th to the 28th of September.
Seven countries were present at the conference, namely Kuwait, Djibouti, Yemen, Bahrain, Egypt, Palestine, and Sultanate of Oman, which hosted the conference.
The symposium was opened by remarks given by the Director General of Sports Activities Khalifa bin Saif Al-Esai, along with Director of Youth and Sports Department Faisal Ali Ghassal, official of the Technical Secretariat of the Council of Arab Youth and Sports Ministers, where four papers were discussed and presented by Dr. Abdul Rahim Al-Droushi, Dr. Ali Al-Yaroubi, Dr. Majid Al-Busafi, and Muhammad Al-Amri, Assistant Director-General for Sports Activities in the Ministry.
Economic Repercussions
In the first paper, Dr. AbdulRahim Al Droushi outlined the economic repercussions of the Corona pandemic, and outlined that as a result of the Corona pandemic and measures taken to combat it, many sectors suffered great economic troubles, while some sectors benefited or recovered. Al Droushi have also addressed the sports sector during the pandemic, as postponements or cancellations caused by the epidemic later affedcted organized sports at all levels in almost all countries, as studies confirm that the degree of impact varies by the type of sport, while it is believed that the suffering and losses incurred by team sports appear to be greater.
According to Al-Droushi, the global situation is incomparable to the Arab world, where the level of professionalism in the sports field is much higher. Consequently, the amount of economic damage to Arab sport is considered low. The sports sector in the Arab world is estimated to have lost between 20% and 25% of its economic contribution, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, Al-Droushi stated that the loss of television rights caused the biggest economic loss for club championships, followed by the inability of fans to watch matches in stadiums.
