CAIRO —The 2022 FIFA World Cup hosted by Qatar from Nov. 20 to Dec. 18 has increased the revenues of cafes in Egypt, as many soccer fans watch the games in public rather than at home because of the high subscription cost to the Qatari-owned beIN Sports channel, the official broadcaster of the World Cup in the Middle East and North Africa.

Mohammad Farid, owner of a cafe in Cairo, told Al-Monitor, “I was keen on preparing the cafe that can accommodate up to 150 people, days before the World Cup kicked off by adding more chairs and big screens, and purchasing the World Cup bundle offered by beIN Sports.”

The Egyptian Satellite Channels Company (CNE), agent of beIN Sports network in Egypt, set the value of the World Cup subscription at 2,013 Egyptian pounds ($81.65) for existing subscribers, while new subscribers pay 2,793 Egyptian pounds ($113.45) in addition to the cost of a receiver at 1,925 Egyptian pounds ($78).

Farid said, “The World Cup attracts many fans to the cafe, and as a result the daily revenues have been increasing and have exceeded 70%. However, I employ more workers in the cafe during match days, bringing the number of staff to about 12 currently, while there are only eight staff normally, to help serve the customers quickly.”