World Cup hotel shortage for supporters planning Qatar trips

By ROB HARRIS
AP Global Soccer Writer

World Cup ticket sales begin in January but supporters are in for a shock when they look for somewhere to stay: Qatar already looks sold out. Extensive searches by The Associated Press of hotel websites found only one property with availability for the entire tournament which runs from Nov. 21 to Dec. 18. Most rooms have already been block-booked by World Cup organizers to ensure availability for teams, FIFA officials, sponsors and media. Only approximately 90,000 rooms will be made available to the public via a website but Qatar wants more than 1 million World Cup visitors.