Fifa has added Arabic as an official language to its football streaming platform, marking the announcement with a documentary focusing on Liverpool star Mohamed Salah.
Fifa confirmed on Wednesday that “Fifa+”, the platform launched in April, would now be available in 10 languages, with Arabic joining Bahasa, Italian, Japanese and Korean as new localised editions.
The hope is the new addition would allow for the “Fifa+” to serve a larger audience in the build-up to the World Cup in Qatar later this year – the first global finals to be held in the Middle East and Arab world.
The launch coincided with the release of two new “Original” documentaries: Mo: A Global Icon, which according to Fifa, “charts Mo Salah’s impact on the world”, and Habsi, a “behind-the-scenes journey into the career of [former Bolton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic and Al Hilal] goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi, from Oman to the Premier League, FA Cup glory and beyond”.
Arabic was earlier this year added as an official Fifa language.
Discussing the launch, “Fifa+” head of content, James Marley, said in a statement: “The Arabic world is rich with football narratives, and we’re not only excited to now be making 'Fifa+' more accessible to fans in the region, but to start bringing a global audience to many of its incredible stories.
“We’re kicking off with Mo: A Global Icon and Habsi, but there is so much more to come, from grassroots to the professional game – particularly as we head towards the Fifa World Cup in Qatar.”
