Qatar has laid out a schedule of more than 560 events running through 2027, and it reads like a wish list for sports fans and culture hunters alike. Formula 1, MotoGP, two football World Cups at different age levels, top-tier tennis, a basketball World Cup, big-name concerts and food festivals are all on the bill, pulled together in one public calendar so visitors can actually plan trips around them.
The push comes off the back of a record year. Visit Qatar counted 5.1 million visitors last year, with another 2.9 million arriving in the first half of this year. Officials say the packed programme is designed to keep that momentum going and to give travellers more to do beyond the headline sporting fixtures — hence the mix of shopping, dining, art and music alongside the races and tournaments.
The sporting line-up is genuinely stacked. MotoGP returns to the Lusail International Circuit from 6 to 8 November, followed by the FIFA U-17 World Cup from 19 November to 13 December. December brings the Qatar T100 Triathlon World Championship Final (10-12 December), and the Doha Marathon follows on 15 January 2027. Tennis fans get the Qatar TotalEnergies Open from 8 to 15 February, and the FIBA Basketball World Cup lands in Doha from 27 August to 12 September 2027. Formula 1 is back at Lusail that December, with the Qatar Grand Prix set for 3 to 5 December 2027.
It's not all sport. Hans Zimmer, Angham and Saint Levant are among the artists on the concert bill, plus a Harry Potter film music concert for the film-score crowd. The Qatar International Food Festival, Art Basel and the Al Ruwais Festival round out the cultural side.
There's a celebrity angle too: Steve Harvey announced at the launch that he has signed a multi-year deal to bring more entertainment to Qatar, including FuelFest, a comedy series and Family Feud — with ambitions for a so-called Family Feud World Cup pitting families from different countries against each other in Doha.
Behind the glamour sits a policy goal: Qatar wants tourism to contribute 12% of GDP by 2030, and officials framing the calendar launch as a message that the country is open and operating normally after a stretch of regional uncertainty. For travellers, that translates into a rare situation where you can pick a date first and be almost guaranteed something world-class is on. Planning a winter sun trip? Combine the marathon or the F1 weekend with beach time. Prefer autumn? The basketball World Cup could anchor a longer Gulf trip. Either way, booking around a specific event — and doing it early — is likely to be the smart play as hotel demand grows.
