Qatar and FIFA have revealed La’eeb as the Official Mascot for this year’s FIFA World Cup 2022.
La’eeb is an Arabic word meaning super-skilled player. He belongs to a parallel mascot-verse that is indescribable – everyone is invited to interpret what it looks like. La’eeb encourages everyone to believe in themselves as ‘Now is All’. He will bring the joy of football to everyone.

The adventurous, fun and curious La’eeb was unveiled during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Final Draw, which took place in Doha this Friday, 1 April.
Khalid Ali Al Mawlawi, Deputy Director General, Marketing, Communications and Tournament Experience, Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, said: “We are delighted to unveil La’eeb as the Official Mascot for the first FIFA World Cup in the Middle East and Arab world. He comes from the mascot-verse – a place that is indescribable. We encourage everyone to imagine what it looks like.”

“We are sure fans everywhere will love this fun and playful character. La’eeb will play a vital role as we engage fans young and old in Qatar’s FIFA World Cup experience,” added Al Mawlawi.
The courageous and uplifting La’eeb has attended every previous FIFA World Cup tournament and has contributed to some of the most famous moments in football history, including a number of iconic goals.
La’eeb will be known for his youthful spirit; spreading joy and confidence everywhere he goes. La’eeb comes from a parallel world where tournament mascots live. It is a world where ideas and creativity form the basis of characters that live in the minds of everyone.

The word ‘mascot’ is said to come from the French term ‘mascotte’ meaning lucky charm. The word mascot was associated with inanimate objects such as a lock of hair or the figurehead on a sailing ship. Recently, the term is most often linked to a good luck animal.

It’s reported that sports organisations started to use animals as mascots to provide some extra entertainment for spectators. At first, sports teams brought along real live animals to the games. Most of these animals were predators expected to roar and strike fear into the hearts of their opponents.
The transformation of live animals and two-dimensional fantasy mascots into the modern three-dimensional variety was triggered by the invention of the Muppets in the late 1960s. These larger-than-life puppets represented a new medium in mascot development and utility: cute and touchable corporate ambassadors. Corporate companies also realised that mascots could offer great potential outside sports fields. Looking around in our daily environment, one can spot several examples. The adoption of Muppet-like mascots proved to be overwhelming success in terms of public relations and marketing. This success quickly encouraged other corporate and sports entities to create their own mascots, which also brought them success. As a result, mascots are now considered a ‘must-have’ marketing and public relations tool by many organizations.