Since the emir of Qatar placed a traditional Arab black and gold coat on the shoulders of the brand new Argentine world champion Lionel Messi on Sunday, Ahmed Al Salim's store has been full.
His family business, based in Doha's popular Souk Waqif, made the '
bisht
' Messi wore when he lifted the trophy, sparking a barrage of comments, with some wondering if the gesture was appropriate.
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Normally, the shop, which has long supplied the Qatari royal family, sells eight to ten garments a day.
On Monday, sales soared to 150 copies, including three similar to the high-end coat worn by Messi, in cotton from Japan and German gold thread, worth nearly 2,000 euros.
“
At one point, there were dozens of people waiting outside the store.
Almost all Argentines
,” Al Salim told AFP.
FIFA wanted the fabric to be as transparent as possible
“
When a sheikh dresses a person with a bisht, it means honoring and appreciating them
,” says Al Salim.
This coat is traditionally worn by men at weddings, graduations and formal events in many Gulf countries.
“
From the point of view of communication, it will be very important because we know how these photos are kept and rebroadcast, notes for her part Carole Gomez, doctoral student in sociology of sport at the University of Lausanne.
This is what we will remember.
»
The members of the World Cup Organizing Committee who placed an order “
wanted the lightest and most transparent fabric possible.
I was surprised because we are in winter, so it seems to me that the goal was to show the Argentine shirt and not to cover it
, ”added the trader.
Al Salim watched Argentina beat France in a café near his shop after handing the World Cup organizing committee two handmade coats, the measurements of the little Argentinian and French captain Hugo Lloris.
"
We didn't know who they were for and I was stunned
" seeing Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani covering Messi's shoulders with it, he told AFP.