A Cultural Moment That United the Arab World as Media City Qatar’s ‘Qatar SoundBeat’ Continues to Reach Millions Beyond Football’s Biggest Regional Stage

On Qatar National Day, during the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2025™ Final at Lusail Stadium, Media City Qatar marked a defining cultural moment with the unveiling of ‘Nabd Qatar’ as the centerpiece of its ‘Qatar SoundBeat’ initiative.  The premiere took place in the presence of national leadership, government officials, visiting dignitaries from the region, and football fans, uniting spectators from across MENA in a shared moment that celebrated Arab identity, creativity, and cultural expression on one of the region’s most-watched stages.

First experienced as a live light show inside the stadium, ‘Nabd Qatar’ has since traveled beyond that moment, reaching wider regional and global audiences with more than one million views across social media platforms, and is now available on YouTube, Spotify, and Anghami.

Conceived and composed by regionally acclaimed musician Omar Rahbany, and produced by Rahbani 3.0, one of Media City Qatar’s licensed companies, the work transformed Lusail Stadium into a canvas of sound and light. The song, performed by the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, brings together 68 musicians and the sounds of 30 instruments in a rich orchestral arrangement.

‘Nabd Qatar’ draws inspiration from the nation’s defining sounds, familiar across the GCC, beginning with Ardha sword dance chants written by H.E. Mr. Salah bin Ghanem Al Ali, and extending to the hum of desert dunes, the whisper of wind, the flight of a falcon, the echo of an Arabian horse’s gallop, the flutter of the flag, and the beat of a heart.

The lyrics, drafted by Abdullah Khaled Abdulquddus, are rooted in thousands of public contributions gathered during Media City Qatar’s Guinness World Record-setting ‘Qatar ArtBeat’ campaign for Qatar National Day 2024. The storytelling was extended through an exclusive music video, directed by renowned filmmaker Karim Rahbani, which was released across social media platforms to reach audiences worldwide.

H.E. Sheikh Dr. Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani, Chairman of Media City Qatar, said: “’Qatar SoundBeat’ turns our nation’s raw sounds into a single piece unveiled on the international stage of the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2025™ final before more than 88,000 spectators from across the Arab world. Media City Qatar used this moment to send a clear message to the region’s creative community: The future of Arab media is being shaped here. It calls every creator in our region to look to Qatar as a place where new ideas can grow. This is ‘Where Next is Made.’”

Omar Rahbany, composer of ‘Nabd Qatar’ and co-founder of Rahbani 3.0, added: “Media City Qatar entrusted us with creating a musical work that could carry the weight of a nation’s story. Every detail was crafted with intention, from phonetic elements that echo a heartbeat to the collective effort of dozens of technicians across multiple disciplines that brought the composition to life.”

Dr. Nasser Sahim, Deputy Executive Director of the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, said: “Performing ‘Nabd Qatar’ was an honor for the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra. A work of this scale demanded precision, unity and deep musical understanding, and our musicians approached it with a thoughtful commitment to excellence in every note."

Media City Qatar continues to strengthen a media ecosystem in Qatar, now home to more than 300 licensed companies across media, content creation, gaming and innovation.