Organizers of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar have filmed an ad to promote the scandal-hit tournament nearly 5,000 miles away from the desert nation in southern Spain.
Picture-postcard beaches in Almeria passed off as Persian Gulf paradises for the shoot, with the stunning Monsul Beach being one of the locations used to film fans watching football on a giant screen and youngsters playing the sport on the sand.
More than 100 people including cameramen, runners and extras took part in the shoot, due to form part of an official TV advert to promote the controversial football tournament, the Daily Star reported.
Local authorities welcomed Qatar's decision to pick the area, despite the fact that critics of the decision who awarded the tournament to the oil-rich country would now have more ammunition to go on the offensive.
Cabo de Gata-Nijar Natural Park, where the shoot took place, is the only region in Europe with a warm Desert climate.
Jose Manuel Ortiz, environmental chief at the regional Junta de Andalucia government, said that in a few years and for a long time, television stations all over the world would show millions of spectators the natural wealth of Cabo de Gata-Nijar Natural Park, its beaches and coves, which would help to publicise their park and generate development and employment opportunities.
The 2022 World Cup has been surrounded by controversy; with allegations of corruption surrounding the decision to award the tournament to Qatar and widespread concern that the kingdom's extreme summer heat would ruin matches and be dangerous for players, the report added.
