K-pop sensation Jungkook to perform at Qatar World Cup opening ceremony

K-pop superstar Jungkook will perform at the Qatar World Cup 2022 opening ceremony later in November alongside a host of star-studded musical names from across the globe.

The singer, who performs with the wildly popular Korean all-male vocal group BTS, announced that “Jung Kook is part of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 soundtrack and will perform at the World Cup opening ceremony” on Twitter on Saturday. 

JungKook was recently spotted in Qatar in October by young fans who expressed their excitement on social media. 

방탄소년단 ‘정국’이 2022 FIFA 카타르 월드컵 공식 사운드트랙과 월드컵 개막식 공연에 참여합니다. 많은 기대 부탁드립니다!
Proud to announce that Jung Kook is part of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Soundtrack & will perform at the World Cup opening ceremony. Stay tuned!#FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/MwJ2kdNRBp

— BTS_official (@bts_bighit) November 12, 2022

The first instalments for the soundtrack to this year’s competition combined Arabic rhythms, vocalists from across Africa, and sounds from the Caribbean.

“Light the sky”, one of the releases from earlier in 2022, features Nora Fatehi, Balqees, Rahma Riad, Manal - four of the most popular female singers in the Arab world. 

It’s not yet clear who Jungkook’s collaborators will be. 

Other rumoured performers at the opening ceremony, which will take place on 20th November at the Al Bayt Stadium, include Latin pop sensation Shakira, Dua Lipa, J Balvin and Black Eyed Peas. 

BTS have performed as an ensemble in the Gulf before, previously attractingaccusations of human rights ‘whitewashing’ by performing in Saudi Arabia in 2019. 

Jungkook, who is just 25 years old - and the rest of the BTS K-pop ensemble - remain hugely popular across the Middle East and beyond. He is the first Korean artist ever to perform at a World Cup event.