For decades, Doha has flung open its doors to Taliban warlords, Islamist dissidents, African rebel commanders and exiles of every stripe.

Now, the tiny emirate is receiving extra scrutiny as it welcomes over a million soccer fans from around the world for the 2022 World Cup.

The week-long countdown to the World Cup in Qatar began on Monday as the world's leading footballers focused their attention on one of the most controversial tournaments in history.

The calm and quiet is a stark contrast to the roar of a World Cup football stadium. But it is quite deliberate.

Rafael Nadal's bid to win one of the few titles missing from his glittering career started poorly as he was beaten in straight sets by eighth-seeded Taylor Fritz in their opening match at the ATP Finals on Sunday.

After a close-fought opening set, Fritz dominated the second as the American secured a 7-6 (3), 6-1 victory over the top-seeded Nadal.

The mascots for the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics have been revealed — a Phrygian cap.

The soft red cap, also known as a liberty cap, is an updated version of a conical hat worn in antiquity in places such as Persia, the Balkans, Thrace, Dacia and Phrygia, a place in modern day Turkey where the name originates. It later became a symbol of the pursuit of liberty in the French Revolution — and is still worn by the figure of Marianne, the national personification of France since that time.

Activists have called on football fans attending Iran's matches at the World Cup starting later this month to chant the name of Mahsa Amini, whose death in custody sparked nationwide protests.

Qatar may hope soccer fans ignore politics at the first World Cup in the Middle East. But Israel and Iran, foes locked in conflicts across the region, are bringing sensitive flashpoints to the tournament's doorstep.

Israel is not competing, but it sees the massive spectacle as a way to further integrate into the Middle East after establishing ties with two of Qatar's Gulf Arab neighbors. Thousands of Israeli tourists, long shunned, are expected to fly to the Qatari capital of Doha on unprecedented direct flights.

FIFA have rejected a bid by Denmark's World Cup squad to wear pro-human rights shirts in training, the Danish football federation (DBU) said Thursday.

England manager Gareth Southgate said his squad will not be discouraged from speaking out about human rights abuses at the World Cup in Qatar, despite a plea from FIFA to focus on football.

Qatar has agreed to allow special direct flights from Israel carrying Israeli and Palestinian World Cup fans, FIFA announced Thursday.