Call to Make Qatar Stars League 'The Best'

Doha, November 29 (QNA) - Qatar Stars League's (QSL) newly-appointed Executive Director of Marketing and Communications dreams of "making it one of the best professional football leagues in the world". Speaking at a media round table on his new role and the way forward for QSL, Khalifa Saleh Al Haroon said, "We aim to be one the best football leagues in the world. This is our dream." He expressed his delight to be part of the QSL team. "I have been talking to players and officials for the past one month that I am with the QSL. We have discussed various aspects to make the game more engaging and spurring greater public participation," he said. Being the founder of ILoveQatar.net, a network of local websites, Al Haroon knows well the pulse of the local community. He is keen to share this experience in further boosting QSLs community outreach in Qatar. His marketing plans include ideas that would ensure greater participation from football fans. "I hope to see fans following their favourite clubs, be Al Sadd, Al Gharafa, or Al Jaish, with dedication, root for their teams at matches and follow them knowledgeably." He hopes to further engage QSL teams to popularise the league. QSL Head of Sales Ian Riddoch, who was present at the roundtable, said, "We received encouraging response from teams when QSL asked them to present their plans for the season." He cited Al Jaish team's innovative idea of scheduling a ladies (fans) day for one of their games, to encourage their participation at stadiums. QSL has two main community outreach programmes. Goalz, a school initiative which engages youth all over Qatar, and QSL Experience, a year round project that provides fun, football based events around the country. Launched in 2013, Goalz engages youth in local schools with full-time coaching professionals who use their experience to nurture talent, getting children active and inspire them by football. QSL recognises and rewards people in Qatar for supporting their favourite QSL team, offering two exciting loyalty programmes; Football Rewards and Kids Club. Football Rewards is open to Qatar residents aged 14 years and over. It enables members to earn points by attending matches which provides access to appealing discounts and rewards across Qatar. Kids Club is the first of its kind loyalty programme for children aged between 5-13 years old in Qatar. It aims to inspire the next generation of football fans to become passionate supporters of Qatari football. Once a member of Kids Club, children receive benefits including exclusive QSL goods, free tickets for their family to enjoy matches and their favourite team t-shirt. ''I hope that football can inspire and engage even more people in Qatar. Whether it is watching their favourite football club play; taking part in our football-inspired events for the entire family; or dreaming to be the next big football player and motivating the next generation through Goalz,'' said Al Haroon. QSL programme for the 2014-15 season aims over 1,600 hours of activities, engaging over 150,000 people, and visits to diverse venues in Qatar including schools, public parks, and shopping malls. (END)