The football World Cup is the pinnacle of the beautiful game. It creates a sense of national unity for fans and players from the 32 nations involved, who come together in the hundreds of thousands to show their passion, emotion and intensity for their shared dream of winning the coveted trophy – in this aspect the tournament is truly unrivalled.
However this World Cup has been stained with controversies from the minute it was announced in 2010 that Qatar had won the hosting rights. In the 12 years that have passed that list of controversies has only grown. From corruption involved in the bid to the abuse faced by migrant workers to the issues concerning fan safety – this is your guide to the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Humans rights abuse for workers
Qatar’s relied on its 2 million foreign labourers, which make up 95% of its labor work force, to help them build several brand-new, state of the art stadiums for the World Cup. The migrant workers have faced hardship, exploitation and abuse from every angle including: unscrupulous recruitment agents and on-site supervisors, illegal living conditions, horrendous working conditions and a Qatari legal system which seems to empower it all.
They revealed they hired an additional 30,000 just for the World Cup, the majority coming from low-income countries, most commonly: India, Nepal, the Philippines, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. They are encouraged to migrate to Qatar by recruitment agents who promise stable jobs where they can learn valuable skills to increase their employability on their return home. In order to pay the recruitment fees migrant workers are often forced to take out loans for thousands of dollars from loan sharks. They are told that they will earn a high, stable income – enough to comfortably pay off the recruitment-related loans and also send money back home to support their families.
Workers arrive to find they have been sold a lie, when they land their passports are confiscated and they are not provided with residence permits (ID cards required by Qatari Law). In Qatar, if unable to produce relavent documentation on demand, you are required to pay a 10,000 QAR (approx. £2,300) fine. This fine, combined with the threat of being expelled from the country, means they dare not venture out of their work site and accommodation and are essentially used as forced labor.
They have been treated appallingly wether on-site or in their accommodation. In 2020 hundreds of Nepalese workers were illegally detained and expelled from the country by Qatari police after being told they would be tested for Covid-19. Other stories include workers recounting how they were transported from site to site. The supervisors would activate the fire alarms, and the workers who were hot, dehydrated, over-exhausted and uncertain of wether it was a drill or real fire, would then evacuate the building only to be beaten and thrown into vans which would transport them to the next work-site, or to their accommodation.
Multiple investigations found that the accommodation, provided for by their employers, did not meet the minimum standards set out by Qatari law. Qatari laws allow for a maximum of four beds per room, no bunk beds and no bed sharing, however investigations revealed the dirty and cramped rooms had enough bunk beds for eight or more people. They were not given enough food and were given no electricity. The lack of electricity meant no air conditioning and, in the Qatari summer months where temperatures are above 28C at night, workers could often be found sleeping outside on the ground in attempt to avoid the unbearable heat in their claustrophobic accommodation.
Indian worker in his accommodation for foreign workers in Doha. Photograph: Marwan Naamani/AFP/Getty Images
Working conditions were no better. “We get a 30-minute break in eight hours,” said one man from Bangladesh. “If we take an extra 20-minute break, they tell us to do an extra 20 minutes’ work.”
Despite having signs around construction sites showing slogans like “Quench your thirst – safety first”, there was no safe drinking water on many sites. A lack of water combined with the 10 hour a day, seven days a week intense labor in the unforgiving Qatari 45C summer heat is just one factor which contributed to many workers suffering from heat-related conditions.
As of 2 March 2021 it was confirmed that over 6500 workers had died during the construction for the World Cup. The true numbers are likely to be much higher – as this figure does not include workers from countries like the Philippines. Cause of death ranges from suicide, construction-related deaths, and heart attacks and respiratory failure caused by heat exhaustion.
Not only are they victims of forced labor, but their salaries are often delayed and much lower than what they were promised. If they complain they are ignored, abused and threatened to be sent back home to their extortionate recruitment-related debts and hungry families. One gardener recalled “My manager just said, ‘I don’t care what they said in Bangladesh. We are giving you this salary and nothing more. If you keep talking like this I’ll tell them to cancel your visa and send you back’.”
After years of pressure from governments, NGOs, celebrities and the international footballing community Qatar decided to increase workers rights. In 2017 they made it illegal to work between 11.30am and 3pm during the summer months. However temperatures outside these hours are still unbearably high – in Doha it reached 42C by 11am this August. The reports of physical and verbal abuse, illegal living conditions, and payment issues were not significantly addressed.
In 2020 they removed their infamous Kafala system – which prevented migrant workers from changing their jobs. Under this system migrant workers were sponsored by their employers and could not change job or leave Qatar without permission. Even since this change workers still require a ‘workers permit’ to change jobs or leave the country which needs to be signed by employers. Employers simply refuse permission or ignore requests – telling workers they can only leave when their work is done or contract is over.
Issues to the football world
This is the first Winter World Cup – it has fallen slap-bang in the middle of the domestic football season which has provoked managers and players from domestic leagues all over the world. It has also caused outcry from football fans because of Qatar’s (lack of) football culture and infrastructure.
Even without the World Cup this season has had a hectic schedule – midweek and weekend fixtures meant players rarely had time to recover from fatigue and injuries. Usually the World Cup is hosted around a month after the domestic season ends, giving players plenty of time to mentally and physically rest and recover, and international teams a chance to train together. This time the majority of domestic leagues, including the Premier League, only ended one week before the tournament.
The short turnover means players have had less time to recover from injury and fatigue and also to become accustomed to the extreme playing conditions in Qatar before playing in the most important tournament of their lives.
The winter World Cup, combined with the already condensed season, has also left club managers and players unions worried about the high potential for injuries in the later stages of the World Cup and also the remainder of the club season. It seems that player welfare has been disregarded by organisers, traded in for the profits and glory that the World Cup brings.
FIFA also faced criticism for awarding hosting rights to Qatar because there is a lack of football culture and heritage – especially compared to other countries that could have hosted and countries that have never hosted. When they won hosting rights they were 113th in world rankings, the lowest a host nation has ever been when awarded the rights. They are also the first nation to host that has never qualified for the World Cup.
It was argued that hosting the tournament here would expose the Middle East to football and that, since ‘football is for all’, other countries should have the chance to host it. For fans the issue does not lie with these two reasons – most agree with them – but would rather that it was not given to a country with limited footballing infrastructure and culture. Giving it to Qatar meant that countries with a significant football fanbase, well-established domestic leagues and an established place on the international stage missed out.
When Qatar won the hosting rights in 2010 their main competitor was the US. In fact the US were favourites, and despite having a very different football culture to that found in South American or European countries, they have established teams and leagues, world-renowned players, they’ve qualified for the tournament before, the precedence set by successfully hosting the 1994 for World Cup and a large football fanbase.
This brings us nicely onto the next section, where we discuss the corruption and abuse of power that led to Qatar winning the 2022 World Cup bid.
Corruption in being awarded the world cup
At the time of the vote, the FIFA Executive Committee was made up of 22 members, which included the President and members of the six world football confederations, which roughly correspond to the continents. All eligible members of the FIFA Executive Committee had one vote, and President Sepp Blatter would have the deciding vote in the event of a tie.
As aforementioned in the days leading up to the final vote for the 2022 World Cup hosting rights everyone expected it to be awarded to the USA. The American bid featured more potential revenue, more media exposure, more infrastructure, the precedent of the 1994 tournament and the incentive of catalysing a growing football culture and fanbase in their country. The vote, in December 2010, involved 22 FIFA executives, since then 17 have either been accused of allegations, banned, indicted or are being investigated by the FBI over allegations of corruption or ethical violations over the Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022 World Cup bids.
Some notable examples include:
- Mohamed Bin Hamman, a Qatari FIFA executive and President of the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) – who has been accused of bribing African members of the board in exchange for votes – has been banned from football for life over ‘conflict of interests’.
- Jack Warner – Vice President of FIFA and President of CONCACAF (The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football) – banned for life after reportedly accepting bribes from Mohamed Bin Hamman.
- Chuck Blazer – general secretary of CONCACAF – was banned for life from football before admitting to taking bribes for the 1998 and 2010 World Cups, Blazer had pleaded guilty to receiving $750,000 from Jack Warner as part of $10 million paid to CONCACAF by FIFA after Warner agreed to vote for the South Africa for the 2010 World Cup.
The two most infamous, and most relavent instances in this World Cup come from Michel Platini, a French footballing legend who won three consecutive Ballon D’ors and was head of UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) at the time, and Sepp Blatter who was FIFA President at the time.
Sepp Blatter, disgraced former President FIFA, has been banned from football 6 years until 2027, for accepting undue economic benefits totalling just under £18 million, and sending £1.3 million in ‘undue payments’ to UEFA President Michel Platini. He told Swiss media last week that awarding the World Cup to Qatar was a ‘bad choice’ and a mistake. He didn’t cite the innumerable human rights violations or corruption scandals as his reason, but said its size was too small “football and the World Cup are too big”. He wanted the 2022 World Cup to go to the US, in what he claimed would be a ‘symbol of peace’, as Russia had hosted the previous tournament.
In 2019, an investigation led by the Sunday Times revealed that Qatari media company Al Jazeera (owned by the Emir) offered FIFA $400m three weeks before they were announced hosts. The same investigation alleges that three years later, another $480m was offered – just before FIFA decided to stop its internal investigation into the corruption surrounding the bid.
Blatter (left) and Platini (right) pictures in 2015. © Patrick B Kraemer/Keystone/AP
The most significant instance of corruption which led to Qatar winning the World Cup bid occurred at a meeting between Michael Platini, the French President at the time (Nicolas Sarkozy) and Qatari crown prince, now the Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. After this meeting Platini, who admitted he ‘might have told’ US officials they had his vote, and his UEFA team used their four votes to give Qatar the World Cup, which won them the bid. Since this meeting the Sheikh has contributed billions into the French economy and French football, most notably through the purchase of the French club PSG. Since the 2011 takeover PSG have spent billions buying players, on wages and upgrading the infrastructure of the club as well as dominating the domestic league and challenging for the Champions League which has in turn created massive revenue both directly and through football tourism for the French economy. Platini has since been banned from the sport until 2023 for his involvement in the Qatar 2022 World Cup bid.
Safety for fans
The safety of travelling fans has also been called into question. Qatar is notorious for its unforgiving legal system, which tourists are not exempt from. Their strict laws against premarital sex, alcohol and homosexuality make this the first time that a host countries local laws and culture majorly clash with not only football culture, but also global standards of human rights, values and attitudes.
Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar – punishable with a prison sentence or even the death penalty under Sharia law, and whilst the Qatar has assured fans they will not arrest anyone for being LGBTQ+ there is still concern for fan safety. Recently a Qatari ambassador for the World Cup described homosexuality as a “damage in the mind”. In April Major General Abdulaziz Abdullah al-Ansari, a senior security leader in Qatar, said rainbow flags could be confiscated, claiming it would protect them from violence from other fans. However they have made accommodations for the fans and assured their privacy, the Major General also stated LGBTQ+ fans could “Reserve the room together, sleep together, this is something that’s not in our concern.” and that “We are here to manage the tournament. Let’s not go beyond, the individual personal things of fans”.
Qatar also has strict laws against sexual contact between unmarried couples, which are punishable by law. However for the World Cup they have said that instances of hand holding and kissing, even by LGBTQ+ fans, will not be punished. However they have reminded people of the cultural differences – Nasser Al Khater the CEO of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar said ” … public display of affection is frowned upon, and that goes across the board – across the board. Qatar is a modest country … They [gay people] will be coming to Qatar as fans of a football tournament. They can do whatever any other human being would do. What I’m saying is Qatar, from a public-display-of-affection factor, is conservative”.
Whilst their strict laws against sexual contact between unmarried couples is a worry for the LGBTQ+ community, it is also a worry for female fan safety. During global sporting tournaments instances of non consensual sex crimes increases – during the 2020 Euro semis and finals of July last year the London Borough of Brent (which includes Wembley) reported 72 sex attacks – the highest in 5 years. Qatars laws consider sexual contact between unmarried couples a crime even if it was non consensual – both Qatari’s and foreign tourists who have reported sexual assault and rape have faced jail time or flogging with a whip or a stick. The FA warns fans that “Female visitors should take extra care when travelling alone at night. Only use registered taxis. When using apps, check licence plates and confirm with drivers the passenger name. Let someone know you are on the way home and the registration details of the car.”
One concern for England fans in particular, 6% of whom admitted to using cocaine inside football stadiums last summer, is Qatars zero-tolerance drug policy for supply, use or possession of all drugs. Foreign embassies have historically been unable to intervene if a citizen is detained on any drug-related charges, any individual caught smuggling drugs into the country could face 20 years in prison, plus a fine of up to 300,000 riyals (about £70,000) and repeat offenders could be charged with life imprisonment or even the death penalty. Vapes are also illegal and cannot be bought into the country.
The alcohol laws in Qatar have also presented a problem – it will only be available from licensed vendors which include hotels, restaurants and ‘fan-zones’ (not stadiums). The Supreme Committee says: “Alcohol is not part of Qatari culture, and may not be available everywhere, but it will be available in designated areas.’ Previous tourists have fallen victim to Qatars vague alcohol laws. If visitors ‘offend’ someone or drinks outside the permitted areas and are reported to the police they are likely to be charged with public drunkenness and face a hefty fine.
Concluding remarks
This article barely scratched the surface of the multitude of scandals surrounding this World Cup – however one thing is clear: the more you try to understand why the World Cup is being hosted in Qatar, the more confusing it becomes.
The World Cup should be about one thing and one thing only – the beautiful game. It is the most important tournament for both players and fans and this time it seems FIFA got it wrong. In the run up to the World Cup there has been far less media hype for the tournament as a whole because it has all been overshadowed by the allegations of corruption, blighted by fears for fan safety and will forever be stained with the blood of the thousands of migrant workers who gave their lives and dignity to make it all possible.
