What other major international sports events have been held here?
It has hosted many national and international events over the years. The largest include the Asian Juniors Cup (1981), the 6th Gulf Cup (1982), the Asian Football Championship Finals (1985), the Asian Youth Championship (1986), the 12th Gulf Cup (1994) and the 11th Asian Football Cup (1996). How do those events compare to hosting the opening match and Final of the FIFA World Youth Championship UAE 2003? The youth tournament is by far the biggest event to be staged at the Zayed Sports City stadium. We are honoured to host it, and are working very hard to make it a success. This kind of event comes along once in a lifetime and we want to be remembered as the perfect host with a superb venue. Do you expect spectators to back the event too? I expect the stadium to be full for both the opening and closing ceremonies of the Championship. If the UAE qualify from Group 1, they are sure to be followed by capacity crowds. But other teams like Egypt, Brazil and Argentina are also popular in the E
