Though not    1     (have) a home team to cheer for,Chinese fans and enterprises remain     2    (enthusiasm) about the Qatar World Cup,held for the first time in the Middle East,which opened on Sunday.

Cheered on by an excited crowd at Al Bayt Stadium in north Doha, the 2022 FIFA World Cup started on Sunday with a Group A game between the host team and Ecuador,     3    raised the curtain on the first edition of the tournament held in winter in the Northern Hemisphere in an Arab country.

Although Team China failed    4    (enter)the Cup finals for the fifth consecutive(连续的)time, Chinese fans are likely to remain strong.

Even with international travel still a challenge due to the COVID-19 pandemic,at least 7,000 tickets for the tournament had been sold to Chinese fans by mid-October,said Mohamed Al-Dehaimi,Qatari ambassador to China. Support from China has also come in a more concrete way,with most of the tournament’s stadiums, its official transportation system    5    its accommodation facilities featuring contributions from Chinese builders and providers.

Eager to promote their brands overseas, Chinese enterprises, led by official FIFA    6     (sponsor) —Wanda Group, Hi-sense Group, smartphone manufacturer Vivo and dairy brand Mengniu—have provided more sponsorship revenue(收入)    7     the host than companies from any other nation, with    8    (approximate)$1.4 billion in total investment, according to Global Data.

“To have a close    9     (connect)with the World Cup is still considered the most direct way to sell their brands and products in the international market when the occasion only    10     (happen) once every four years.” Song Xiangqing, an economist and vice-president of the Commerce Economy Association of China,told Beijing Business Today.