Hassan Al Suwaidi

Captain Hassan Matar Al Suwaidi is a former Qatari footballer and a retired brigadier staff officer in the Qatar Armed Forces. He spent more than three decades in football with Al Sadd and the Qatar national team, alongside a varied military and professional career that concluded with his retirement from the armed forces in 2002.

He was born and raised between Msheireb and Al Bidda and lost both parents before taking his first steps. His maternal grandmother cared for him until her death, after which he moved to the home of his paternal grandmother. Sheikha Moza bint Khalifa Al Suwaidi, aunt of His Highness the Father Amir, asked to raise him and his brothers, while his aunts surrounded them with care, strong values and attention to education.

At ten, football gave him a way out of grief and isolation. He played in the neighbourhood with his brothers, relatives, friends and neighbours, and his ability quickly became visible. At fourteen he joined Al Orouba Club in Al Bidda, beginning in the second team. After club mergers in the early 1970s, Al Orouba and Qatar Club formed Al Istiqlal; he spent a season with the youth side and reached the first team at sixteen.

He moved from Al Istiqlal to Al Sadd in 1974. The transfer almost ended his career when he and several teammates found that they had signed for two clubs, but senior members of the ruling family helped settle the dispute and Al Sadd secured the players. His years there brought strong performances and an important contribution to the club’s success.

Football was more than recreation: it improved his educational, professional and social prospects and helped him manage the loneliness of orphanhood. After preparatory school, financial pressures led him to join the armed forces as a soldier at Al Duhail camp. Unconvinced that the rank matched his ambitions, he left and explained to the late commander Mohammed Abdullah Al-Attiyah that he wanted to complete secondary school. With the commander’s help, he returned to education while continuing to represent Qatar and Al Sadd.

After secondary school, His Excellency Sheikh Suhaim bin Hamad Al Thani, then Minister of Foreign Affairs, offered him a scholarship to the United States. His earlier commitment to the Ministry of Defence meant that he needed permission to travel. Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa bin Hamad took him to His Highness the Father Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, then Minister of Defence and Crown Prince, who asked him to rejoin the armed forces as an officer candidate.

From 1978, the arrangement remained unresolved until a second meeting in 1980 led to his promotion to lieutenant despite his having had no basic military training. He entered military college at the end of that year and later attended the Royal Military Academy in Britain. He graduated in 1981, became a first lieutenant in 1983 and remained in the Qatar Armed Forces until retirement in 2002.

The source traces his military service from 1977 across three principal assignments: ten years in the Special Forces as assistant battalion commander, five years as commander of the special wing at the Armed Forces Training Institute and a final period as Secretary-General of the Military Sports Federation.

From 2002 to 2011, he worked at Doha Insurance as Director of Public Relations and Director of Board Affairs. Military discipline and a wide professional network helped him adapt to the company and attract clients. He also worked on international competitions hosted by Qatar, including the 2006 Asian Games and the 2010 AFC Asian Cup.

The support of Sheikha Moza bint Khalifa kept the family together after his father’s death, giving him and his brothers Ahmed and Abdullah a secure home. Marriage and six children later brought the stability he had missed in childhood, and he made being a present father, supporter and friend a central responsibility.

Loss nevertheless returned repeatedly. Sheikha Moza died in 1972, his brother Abdullah in 1986 and his grandmother in 1991. Each had been a source of care after his parents’ death, yet he remained composed and continued his military and sporting responsibilities.

His achievements extended across Al Sadd, Qatar’s national team, military service and major sporting events, and he also served during the Gulf War.

He passed his love of sport to his family. His son Nawaf began in football before moving, on the guidance of His Highness the Father Amir, to athletics. He won gold medals at Gulf and Arab competitions at youth and junior levels, then turned to bodybuilding after repeated injuries and later achieved strong results in rallying.

He retired from football in 1988 after Al Sadd won the Asian Club Championship. A testimonial festival marking his career was held in 1992.

He credits His Highness the Father Amir with removing many obstacles from his personal and professional path. The hardest years remained those of childhood and the financial strain that followed Sheikha Moza’s death, when he and his brother Ahmed became responsible for their aunts and grandmother.

Having realised his personal ambitions, he now regards his experience and values as a legacy to pass to his children.