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00:00Let's start with the feeling on the ground, how's it been? Well, I think the big question mark after 12 years of preparation is will everything go OK? And so, Mike, top takeaway is, yeah, things worked pretty well. The shuttle flight system to get fans in and out of the country. The metro system to get them to the games in a way. Yes. There have been some growing pains. There was some issues with the ticketing app, but for the most part, things went well. Another takeaway, though, that I'm going to be looking at is, is there have been some empty seats in the stadiums. And does that mean that there aren't fans here? Does that mean that they haven't come to spend money in Qatar? I think that's a kind of a question mark for us going forward. I will say that the games that I've been to have been quite well attended, OK? I've stuff on keys on the D ring, so I don't blame people if they leave a little bit early. So I know, I know a lot has changed in 10 years. What about the politics and how far away from this particular World Cup? No. And really, the rainbow's becoming the dominant issue between Western journalists and Qatar. We've seen teams start to push back against FIFA's decision to essentially ban rainbow armbands on the field. Does. Do we get some more developments there with respect to teams maybe flouting those rules? I think that remains to be seen. Another important one for me, though, a lot of people have criticized Qatar for not having a legacy of football pedigree as well. But I think it's proved very clear over the past couple of days that this region really cares about football. But the reaction, the holiday that we saw in Saudi Arabia after that team stunned Argentina and also the reception, the two to Iran's team not singing the national anthem, showing just how important football is, where Iran as well. And let's save some time for the fans. I know you've been taking in some interesting found stories. Yes, I have. But, you know, the one I think that has caught everyone's eye here has been the Japanese fans cleaning up the stadiums after the match. This has gone viral on social media. They actually pick up the trash after the games, even after their stunner against Germany. This is something that, you know, Japanese fans apparently have done for quite a while. But I didn't know love but know about it. Everyone I've talked to has just talked about how this image was so powerful for them.

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World Cup: Transport, Empty Seats, LGBTQ+, Japan's Tidy Fans

As the first week of the World Cup in Qatar draws to a close, Simone Foxman reports from Doha on the transport system, empty seats in stadiums, the rainbow symbol controversy, and how the world fell in love with Japan's fans who tidied up after themselves after their national team defeated Germany. (Source: Bloomberg)

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