The Best Places To Watch The World Cup In Abu Dhabi

The FIFA World Cup is being held in Russia this year, and Abu Dhabi’s hotels, bars and restaurants are ensuring that loyal football fans don’t miss out on the action. Big screens across the city will be projecting the matches live, allowing you to cheer your team to victory.

1. Loca Restaurant & Bar

Restaurant, Mexican

This Latin American haven offers an authentic experience of Mexican cuisine. Celebrated for its delicious twist on beloved classics such as nachos and guacamole, Loca is a common meeting point for trendy, fashionable patrons. To commemorate the 2018 FIFA World Cup, this award-winning eatery is showing live matches on nine different screens. This is complimented by a specially designed menu and exclusive offers on beverages.

2. Saadiyat Beach Club

Health Spa

Saadiyat Beach Club offers a unique viewing experience for football fans. Soak in the sun and enjoy a range of snacks and drinks in their famous infinity pool or on the plush loungers surrounding it, while a cinema-style screen features the latest matches. You can also get some amazing discounts on food and beverages and enjoy their customised stadium-themed menu.

3. Last Exit

Food Truck, Mexican, Italian, Middle Eastern, Greek, Indian, Street Food, Fast Food

Located on the road between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, Last Exit is a every traveller’s dream pitstop. Famous for their food trucks, many of which are local businesses only found in Last Exit, this themed roadside attraction offers everything from pizzas and burgers to gyros and curries. This year, to celebrate the World Cup, they will be showing the matches live, promising an unforgettable viewing experience where you can enjoy the thrill of the match in an open-air cinema with some of the best food UAE has to offer.

5. Emirates Palace

Suite Hotel, Hotel

Luxury sun-loungers on the beach at the Emirates Palace

Emirates Palace distinguishes itself as an architectural masterpiece. Beautifully decorated and dripping in gold, this decadent hotel is the third most expensive in the world. Hosting a lavish, unique celebration for the 2018 World Cup, Emirates Palace has transformed its Ramadan tent into a World Cup tent for footie fans. A venue that can fit up to 500 captivated viewers, the tent boasts huge seven-metre by four-metre (23 by 13-foot) LED screens. There is even a Fan Zone where you can let your inner child run wild and enjoy the foosball tables, PlayStations and pool tables.

6. Abu Dhabi Golf Club

Sports Center

With a Fan Zone open throughout the tournament, Abu Dhabi Golf Club is showing live matches on three big screens. There will also be a range of delicious dishes to compliment the matches, complete with beloved classics and some new Russian delicacies. There will also be competitions running throughout the month with some amazing prizes up for grabs. And it gets even more exciting: former England player Robbie Fowler will be hosting a brunch at the club, allowing you to experience the matches with a legend who has actually experienced them.

7. Fairmont Bab Al Bahr

Hotel

The modern and stylish foyer at Fairmont Bab Al Bahr

Fairmont Bab Al Bahr is hosting a 900-square-metre (1,000-square-yard) tent, one of the largest in the emirate, to allow football fans to experience all 64 matches in style. There’s a menu filled with classic dishes such as pizzas and burgers to satiate your hunger during the matches, as well as exclusive competitions which can even win you tickets to a quarter-final match in Russia.

8. Yas Viceroy Abu Dhabi Hotel

Hotel

The stunning Yas Viceroy Hotel, which boasts exclusive views of the Yas Marina Circuit, provides the perfect backdrop for footie fans to enjoy the World Cup. With their bespoke World Cup Terrace Tent and buzzing atmosphere, Yas Viceroy invites you to indulge in a range of nibbles and snacks and shisha while experiencing the matches on one of their many big screens.

9. Emirates Park Zoo

Park, Zoo

Yes, that’s right. You can actually enjoy the World Cup’s football matches surrounded by breathtaking wildlife. In what is surely one of the most unique venues to host live screenings of the matches, Emirates Park Zoo will be showing the matches on big screens. With food available at their restaurant and an array of fascinating species all around you, it might be difficult to focus on football. This magnificent adventure is a must for die-hard fans and families alike.

10. Sheraton Abu Dhabi Hotel & Resort

Hotel

Situated on the idyllic Abu Dhabi Corniche and overlooking the Arabian Gulf, Sheraton Abu Dhabi is a five-star hotel renowned for its fabulous cuisine. This June and July, they are allowing football fans to feel right at home with a bespoke World Cup tent. What better way to cheer your team to victory than in a laid-back, relaxed venue with all your favourite snacks? The best part? If you demonstrate your loyalty and wear your team’s shirt during their game, you get a 25% discount on drinks.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.