Mòd 2022 awarded to Qatar

An Comunn Gàidhealach have announced that the 2022 Royal National Mòd, the annual celebration of Gaelic music and language, has been awarded to oil-rich Qatar in the Gulf of Arabia.

A spokesman for An Comunn Gàidhealach said “It’s the type of out of the box thinking which we’ve needed for a long time. Not since Caithness have we taken the Mòd to a hostile desert.”

What the implications are for the world famous Whisky Olympics in going to a predominantly Muslim country are not yet clear. Qatar is famously more liberal than its neighbour Saudi Arabia, so fears of tartan burkhas can be put to one side, but Cathy Bhàn has already stated she’ll be fronting Al Jazeera’s coverage, breaking years of tradition of the BBC being the Mòd’s main broadcaster.

The Mòd Football Cup will be played for between Glasgow Island and the Qatari National team as a warm-up to the World Cup set to be held the following month.

However, there are already concerns about a lack of proper facilities and large Gaelic choirs such as Dingwall and Inverness have already block booked hotels in neighbouring Dubai.

Some Mòd goers in Fort William today greeted the news with a mix of enthusiasm and bemusement. “I’d literally go anywhere with some Sun after a few days in this grim wet concrete carbuncle.” said one.  “As long as they have Robert Robertson booked in somewhere, I’ll be there with bells on and Bell’s in me.” said another.

There are also allegations of corruption over the voting procedures, which saw Paisley upstaged for the 2021 Mòd which was awarded to St Petersburg. The newly rebranded An Communist Gàidhealach refused to discuss allegations that there was  Russian interference in the election.