Al Jazeera World Cup 101 — 140 Episodes from Istanbul to Doha

Designed to make football knowledge, World Cup history and match developments easy to understand and quick to consume, the project combined studio production with an unusually demanding real-time editorial workflow.

Presented across its English and Arabic output by Samantha Johnson and Rita Khan, World Cup 101 became much more than a traditional football program: it was content created while one of the biggest sporting events in the world was unfolding in real time. Al Jazeera Media Institute also lists Rita Khan’s role as presenter of World Cup 101 on the Al Jazeera O2 platform in 2022.

FROM ISTANBUL TO DOHA

The scale of the production was one of its defining features.

According to Line Production Turkey and Deimos Brands Group’s project records, the first 136 English and Arabic episodes were produced in LPT’s own studio in Istanbul.

As the tournament reached its decisive stages, the production moved directly to Doha, Qatar, where the final four episodes covering the semi-finals and final were filmed on location.

In total, the LPT production archive records 140 English and Arabic episodes produced throughout the project.

This structure required far more than conventional studio production. Each new match created new results, talking points and stories, meaning the production and editorial teams had to constantly adapt to the tournament as it happened.

REAL-TIME WORLD CUP PRODUCTION

World Cup 101 was built around speed.

Matches were followed as they were played, content was adjusted according to results and new episodes were prepared around the developing story of Qatar 2022.

For Line Production Turkey, this meant maintaining a continuous production operation throughout the tournament while coordinating studio, crew, presenters, technical departments and content requirements.

The final transition from Istanbul to Doha brought the project directly into the atmosphere of the World Cup’s biggest moments.

International production directory Screen Global Production independently lists “Al Jazeera World Cup 101 for Qatar” among Line Production Turkey’s 2022 credits, identifying LPT in the Line Producer role.

11.6 MILLION VIEWS AND A SHORTY AWARDS FINALIST

The digital performance of World Cup 101 became one of the strongest parts of the project.

Al Jazeera Digital submitted the English-language TikTok edition of World Cup 101 to the 15th Annual Shorty Awards, where it was selected as a finalist in the Branded Series category.

According to the official Shorty Awards case study, the English TikTok series consisted of 70 videos presented by Samantha Johnson and generated:

11.6 million views
1.48 million likes
Nearly 60,000 new followers
Approximately 600% audience growth

The campaign was designed specifically to expand Al Jazeera English’s TikTok audience while delivering rapid coverage of every match throughout Qatar 2022.

The difference between the figures reflects the two formats: Line Production Turkey’s records count 140 total English and Arabic outputs, while Al Jazeera’s Shorty Awards submission focuses specifically on the 70-video English TikTok series.

AL JAZEERA x LINE PRODUCTION TURKEY

For Line Production Turkey, World Cup 101 represents one of the company’s most extensive broadcast and social content productions.

Unlike a commercial produced over one or two shooting days, this project demanded an ongoing production structure capable of responding immediately to one of the world’s largest live sporting events.

The collaboration also demonstrated LPT’s ability to move beyond traditional line production and operate within a long-form international content partnership — supporting studio production, fast-turnaround content and location production across two countries.

The project began in Istanbul.

It evolved alongside every match of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

And it finished in Doha, at the center of football’s biggest global event.

140 bilingual episodes.
Two cities.
One World Cup.
11.6 million digital views.

PROJECT CREDITS

Client / Broadcaster: Al Jazeera
Project: World Cup 101
Event: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022
Production Partner: Line Production Turkey
Presenters: Samantha Johnson & Rita Khan
Production Locations: Istanbul, Türkiye & Doha, Qatar
Istanbul Production: First 136 English & Arabic Episodes
Doha Production: Final 4 Episodes
Total Bilingual Output: 140 Episodes
English TikTok Series: 70 Videos
TikTok Views: 11.6 Million
TikTok Likes: 1.48 Million
Shorty Awards: Finalist — Branded Series
Year: 2022