Qatar becomes first host country to be eliminated very early at the World Cup

Qatar has been eliminated from the World Cup, after just six days into the tournament it is hosting, which is also the first biggest soccer event in the Middle East.

Qatar suffered its second straight defeat at the World Cup after losing 3-1 to Senegal on Friday, November 25. A few hours later, Netherlands and Ecuador drew 1-1 in the other Group A game.

Qatar still has one final game against the Netherlands on Tuesday, and even if they manage to pull off an upset, they won’t still be able to move on to the next level of the competition. The Middle East country is now the quickest host nation team to depart the tournament in the 92-year history of the World Cup.

South Africa had been the only other home team to fail to make it out of the group stage in 2010, but it at least managed a win and a draw.

Qatar had never qualified for the World Cup before FIFA’s highly-contentious decision in 2010 to host the tournament in the country. That gave its team automatic entry. But although the oil- and gas-rich nation spent around $220 billion of its vast riches on building stadiums, roads, and even a new city for the World Cup, it couldn’t put together a solid defense for the team.