A file photo of the Marmi Festival.
Doha, Qatar: Registration for the 17th Qatar International Falconry and Hunting Festival (Marmi 2026) begins today, Sunday, December 21, at the Qatar Falconry Association headquarters in Katara Cultural Village. Registration will continue until December 23, from 4pm to 8pm.
The Marmi Festival is held annually under the patronage of H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani. It includes several championships and competitions, most notably: Al-Talaa, which focuses on falconry for hunting houbara bustards; Al-Da’wa, a speed race between falcons in various categories; Hadad Al-Tahadi, a challenge between falcons and racing pigeons; the Saluki Hadad Championship; and the Promising Falconer Championship, among other competitions eagerly anticipated by the public each year.
Online registration for the Al-Da’wa and Al-Talaa championships opened on Thursday, December 18, and will continue until December 22. The Marmi Festival organising committee also clarified that registration for the Saluki race championship will be held on December 21st and 22nd.
On another note, the organising committee of the Qatar International Falconry and Hunting Festival 2026 opened registration for participants from the United Arab Emirates and other GCC countries in the Haddad Challenge Championship (Peregrine Falcon category) on December 17th and 18th at the Hamdan Bin Hamad Heritage Centre in Al-Habab. This was done to facilitate their participation and that of other falconers from the GCC countries, and to streamline entry procedures for the festival.
The Marmi International Festival is considered one of the most important events organised by the Qatari Falconry Association since Unesco’s November 2010 announcement of its approval to inscribe falconry on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This recognition aims to preserve the cultural and emotional values of this sport, passed down from ancestors, and to highlight its importance in Arabic literature and folklore, particularly in the Gulf and Qatar. Mr. Mutaib Al-Qahtani, Director of the Al-Qannas Association Championships and Head of the Marmi Festival, explained that registration for all festival championships will take place simultaneously from December 21st to 23rd.
