From football to cultural movie screenings to exclusive dinner parties and break dancing – there’s a lot going on in Qatar this weekend. Here are our picks:

The Emir Cup final

The finale of the 42nd edition of the Emir cup will be played between Al Sailiya and Al Saad at the Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday, May 17 at 7pm.

Organized by the Qatar Football Association, the Emir Cup is played every year during April and May. Eighteen local football teams from the Qatar Stars League and QatarGas League had competed over six rounds, and the winners on Saturday will not only be crowned champions by the Emir, but will also qualify to participate in the AFC Champions League.

Tickets are available from booths in Villaggio, The Mall, Landmark Mall, Lagoona Mall, Katara, 51 East in City Center and Al Khor Mall.

Indian classical vocal concert

Organized in affiliation with the Indian Cultural Center (ICC), an Indian Classical Vocal Concert will be held on Friday, May 16 from 6pm to 9pm at the Al Falek Hall at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.

The concert will feature performances by Carnatic singer Abhishek Raghuram accompanied by mridangist Trivandrum V.Balaji and violinist A. Subhalakshmi.

Tickets for the event cost QR50/person and are available online here. Children under 5 years old can attend for free. For more information, contact 77885766.

‘The Square’ at DFI

The Doha Film Institute will screen the Egyptian-American documentary The Square at Building 16 of the Katara Drama Theater from Thursday, May 15 to Wednesday, May 21 at 7pm.

Directed by Jehane Noujaim, the English-subtitled feature delves into the personal stories and emotional drama behind the two-and-a-half year-long Egyptian Revolution.

Set against a backdrop of bloody battles, an election, and a second president being deposed at the beginning of July 2013, the documentary examines how young Egyptians have been fighting for their beliefs.

Tickets are QR35 and can be purchased online here. Children under the age of 13 will not be admitted unless accompanied by an adult.

International break-dance competition

Back for the third time, the World Bboy Classic, Qatar Qualifier 2014 will take place on the third Floor of City Center Mall from 5 pm to 10 pm on Friday, May 16.

The competition aims to unite cultures and create opportunities for skilled dancers. Crews from Oman, Bahrain, Dubai, Egypt, Lebanon, Algeria, Morocco will all be competing with teams from Qatar to become regional champions.

The event is free for spectators. If you’d like to take part, registrations are open until the day of the event. 

Whichever crew is crowned Middle East champion will go on to compete in the World Championships in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, in June. For more information, contact 66696806 or visit the official Facebook page.

Islamic reform lecture

Eminent scholar Dr. Tariq Ramadan will hold a lecture on Saturday, May 17 at the Intercontinental Doha The City from 6pm to 8pm.

Organized by the Pakistan Professionals Forum-Qatar (PPFQ), the lecture will focus on using the principles of critical thinking to develop new ways of approaching Islam in order to truly understand the concepts of the faith.

Ramadan is a professor of Contemporary Islamic Studies at Oxford University, and Director of the Center for Legislation in Islamic Ethics (CLIE) at the Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies.

The lecture will be followed by a question and answer session. The event is free of charge, but in order to register, attendees must send their name, email address and mobile number to [email protected].

More information can be found on the PPFQ Facebook page.

Bonus:

• 34th GCC club championship: This regional basketball championship, which began on May 11, will run until May 19 at the Women’s Sports Hall in the Aspire Zone from 4pm to 10pm daily. Teams from the six GCC countries will compete three rounds to reach the finale, which will be played on Sunday, May 18 and  Monday, May 19. Tickets are priced at QR10 and are available at the venue, and at Qatar Olympic Committee outlets in various malls.
• Supper club at Urban Indian Kitchen: The Urban Indian Kitchen, an initiative by Irum Ashraf, will be hosting its monthly Supper Club this Friday, May 16 from 7pm to 10pm. The Supper Club is essentially a “pop-up kitchen” where guests get a chance to mingle with strangers while dining on a four-course, freshly-cooked Indian meal. Tickets cost per person is QR250, which is paid on arrival at the venue. Interested diners can email their bookings to [email protected]
• Red Bull Qatar Workshop: Qatari Red Bull athlete Mohamed Abu Issa will conduct a workshop on Quad Bike racing in the desert near the entrance to Sealine Beach Resort from 7am to 3pm on Friday, May 16. The event is free, and interested riders can join in at any time. Motocross and buggy riders are also welcome to ride along with the Quad Bikers on the dunes.
• Friends Big Bazaar: Organized by The Friends Doha-Qatar, a bazaar will be held on May 16 from 4pm to 6pm at the Sports Hall at the Simaisma Youth Center. Designed to entertain the whole family, it will include stalls from Egypt, Indonesia, India and Pakistan, selling clothes and accessories, books, henna, face-painting and home-cooked food. Entry is free. For more details, contact 55607780.

What are your weekend plans? Thoughts?