The Gulf nation’s latest contribution will help more than five clubs to return to the pitch after ten months of waiting.

Qatar donated one million euros through the Qatar Fund for Development to reconstruct eight children’s football fields in Germany.

The latest contribution comes after the sports infrastructure in the German state of Rhineland was destroyed by heavy floods last year, leaving little to no fields for children in the area to play the sport.

The enormous donation aims to highlight the importance of sports around the world and to encourage children to develop a healthy and active lifestyle.

Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud Al-Thani, Qatar’s Ambassador of Qatar to the Federal Republic of Germany, laid the foundation stone for the stadiums. During the ceremony, the official revealed that he took the initiative to contact stakeholders in the state immediately after the tragic flood to learn how Qatar can assist the inhabitants of the country.

In a statement to the newspaper ‘Frankfurter Allgemeine’ and German channel Sport1, the President of the Rhineland State Football Association, Walter Desch, confirmed that the Gulf nation’s initiative helped the Federation take a big step toward restoring sports life in the region.

Thanks to the donation, the clubs were finally able to continue their mission of providing services to the young generation.

Norbert Fayzy, a member of the Foundation’s Board of Directors, also stated that Qatar’s generous contribution will allow the entity to provide immediate and direct assistance to the sports sector, ensuring that children and young people continue to play football.

More than 200 people died as a result of flooding in the Eifel mountain region of western Germany and eastern Belgium last July.

More than 130 people died in the Ahr valley, some 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Bonn.

When the Vesdre valley in Belgium was inundated, another 38 people perished, prompting disputes about dam management and even an investigation into the possibility of involuntary manslaughter charges stemming from officials’ alleged failures to respond to alarms sent by the EU’s flood warning system.

Reaction in Germany

A number of German news outlets commended Qatar’s gesture, emphasising that the donation will enable the children in the area to return to the football fields after the drastic floods.

They also stated that children’s dreams of playing football on professional pitches will come true thanks to Qatar’s contribution to the Rhineland Federation and the (Fuball hilft) Foundation.

The Rheinland Zeitung daily also said that more than five clubs who were unable to return to the pitch over the past ten months due to the collapse of the stadiums will now be able to resume their training soon.