The Rise and Fall of Human Rights: The Case Against Qatar in the First 12 Years of the World Cup, and Insights from the Media on Football, Sports and Culture

This November, billions of people around the world will tune in to the World Cup – one of the greatest sporting spectacles in human history. It’s an event that has brought wars to a standstill, canonized sporting saints and sinners, and united the planet in savoring every exclamation point goal, last-ditch tackle and intricately choreographed celebratory knee-slide.

Ever since it was named in 2010 as the host nation of the 2022 World Cup, Qatar’s human rights record has been in the spotlight – from the death and conditions endured by migrant workers to LGBTQ and women’s rights.

According to an interview with Piers Morgan, the Secretary General of the Supreme Committee, which is in charge of the World Cup, said that 500 to 400 migrant workers have died as a result of their work.

The country’s World Cup debut was 12 years in the making, a period in which Qatar’s host status has stirred controversy within the footballing community and beyond.

Indeed, the reports even went as far as to label Qatar’s bid as “high risk,” but the country nevertheless triumphed with 14 votes to USA’s eight in the final round of balloting.

In the weeks following France’s vote, a piece of Veolia was bought by another company that was also owned by a Qatari firm.

Not to mention: A firm connected to the Qatari sovereign fund hired the son of Michel Platini, the former head of the European football association. Népotisme? Zut alors!

But don’t take our word for it. The most corrupt thing I have seen in my career was when Matt Miller went to Switzerland to see the bidding process, he spent a couple years working in New Jersey politics.

The #PayUpFIFA Campaign: Respecting Human Rights and Against T-Shirt Formed by the Arab League, the FIFA Rugby Union, and the Socceroos of Australia

To ensure that image happens, Qatar even announced that international television crews will be banned from filming in locations without pre-approval from Qatari authorities. James Lynch, from London-based human rights group Fair Square, told the Guardian that it would be very difficult for media to cover stories not related to games.

By the end of this tournament, every single person who is expected to watch will know what is happening off screen in a place that has never hosted a World Cup.

By then the federations and representatives of FIFA had been meeting on and off for months about a plan by the group of national teams to wear multicolored armbands with the message “One Love” during their matches at the tournament in Qatar. FIFA had been displeased by the idea, but the teams — which included the tournament contenders Germany, England, the Netherlands and Belgium — felt a tacit peace had been agreed to: The teams would wear the armbands, and FIFA would look the other way, then quietly fine them later for breaking its uniform rules.

The US Soccer team quietly signed onto the #PayUpFIFA campaign but hasn’t spoken publicly about it. As the world’s richest country, with a major military base in Qatar, America has a particular mandate to champion these values – especially with the current administration’s stated commitment to holding Gulf autocrats accountable.

England’s Football Association has been similarly weak in its response. After European football federations promised to call out Qatar with more than “just wearing a t-shirt,” they ended up settling on wearing rainbow armbands, which, quite literally, amount to less than a t-shirt.

All national teams need to step up – and players have a crucial role to play in this effort as well. We can only imagine the level of pressure already on these athletes to perform. They have dreamed about this moment since they were children, and fought so hard to make it happen.

They didn’t start kicking a football thinking that they’d have to speak out about human rights. There is also an athlete activism tradition, including Tommie Smith, John Carlos, and Marcus Rashford raising their hands in Mexico City to show their disapproval of the Vietnam War.

This doesn’t mean every player must speak out. The Socceroos of Australia called for the decriminalization of all same-sex relationships in a country where they had worked and had been harmed, to be supported and amplified.

After all, this is about more than the World Cup. It’s about whether people who believe in democracy and human rights are going to let authoritarian regimes get away with hijacking the sports we love.

The kingdom of Saudi Arabia has started to sportswash it’s image. Russia and the Kingdom of Bahrain have tried to do it. But if we make a stand against Qatar on the world stage, maybe we can make the next generation of autocrats more worried about a Qatar 2022-style humiliation than thirsty for a Beijing 2008 moment.

If we change the behavior of the world’s biggest sports body, then we will make it easier for them to award the World Cup to a country like Saudi Arabia, which will result in years of boycotts, protests and damaging press.

This matters. Every football fan knows that the World Cup is more than a tournament. It’s been compared to a global eclipse which strikes the entire planet for a month at a time.

It’s a unique way for nations to compete and shake hands. It is supposed to represent the best of us, with our incredible diversity and common humanity.

So far, the tournament has been consumed by more controversies off the field than have been caused by the erratic VAR video review system that can send fans into fury.

The politics will be expected to turn into a sideshow, even among those who are morally conflicted, now that the goals have started flying in, after Saudi Arabia stunned Argentina on Tuesday. But the political subplot also risks a PR debacle.

The controversy over the ban on players wearing OneLove has turned a sporting performance into an international diplomatic spat.

“One of the most powerful things about football, about soccer, is potential to bring the world together,” Blinken told reporters in Doha Tuesday, alongside top Qatari officials.

I am always concerned when we see restrictions on freedom of expression. It’s especially so when the expression is for diversity and for inclusion. And in my judgment, at least, no one on the football pitch should be forced to choose between supporting these values and playing for their team,” Blinken said.

Briana Scurry, a retired World Cup winning goalie for the US women’s national team, told CNN’s “Newsroom” Tuesday that FIFA had brought on this political storm with its choice of venue for the World Cup.

The Middle East is Changing: Football, Cricket and Culture in the Light of FIFA Corrupt Practices and FIFA Propagation in Russia and the UK

For instance, Iranian players declined to sing their national anthem in their opening game against England on Monday, in a possible protest about the violent suppression of dissent rocking the Islamic Republic.

The tournament is a test case of the zeal of Western institutions – sporting teams and leagues, cultural institutions and businesses – to grab a share of the gusher of cash coming from the Middle East despite the possible threat to their values.

Football is not the only sport changing because of this global power shift. Hundreds of millions of viewers in India for the fast and furious IPL cricket league have shifted the balance of power in the sport from England and Australia. Formula One, the biggest sports game in the world, sends its 200 mph racers onto multiple Middle East circuits. Saudi Arabia is trying to break the dominance of the venerable PGA tour in the US after they bought Phil Mickelson andDustin Johnson with massive pay incentives.

In this case, an authoritarian nation seeks to buff up their image despite the fact that they have been criticized for their system of government and human rights performance. China was accused of such an agenda with its 2008 and 2022 Summer and Winter Olympics, where attempts at political activism largely fizzled under its repressive rule.

Allegations of corruption in the awarding of the tournament to Qatar, and its predecessor in Russia in 2018, have long dogged FIFA. In 2020, the US Justice Department alleged that bribes were accepted by top global football officials ahead of votes that allocated the two events. Officials in Russia and the UK did not accept the allegations. Last year, the DOJ wrapped up a six-year investigation into soccer corruption by awarding $201 million to FIFA and the sport’s other global regulators, saying they had been victims of decades-long bribery schemes.

The kerfuffle, meanwhile, over an attempt by the captains of European nations to promote LGTBQ+ issues exemplifies cultural and religious clashes at this World Cup, which are unfolding every day between Western and conservative developing nations and in developed societies that include many migrant communities and diverse creeds and religions.

England, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Wales had planned to join the campaign. But their governing associations accused FIFA of threatening sporting sanctions on the players, including possible yellow cards, which could result in them being sent off if they picked up a second yellow card for a foul in a match.

In a conference room at the Fairmont on Nov. 20, though, everything changed. Fatma Samoura, the second-ranking executive of the governing body of sports, told the federations that their armbands would not only be against the tournament’s uniform regulations, but also considered as a provocation toward the country of their choice. They would not be allowed, Samoura said. The Europeans were stunned.

“Today I feel Qatari. Today I feel Arab. Today I feel African. Today I feel gay. I feel like I’m disabled today. Today I feel a migrant worker,” Infantino said.

When FIFA banned homophobia, when did it become a global phenomenon? The case of the Saudi Arabian soccer player, Harry Kane, and the Saudi-American president

The country where homosexuality is banned, dismissed claims that it was behind the ban. “Everything that happens on the pitch is a FIFA matter,” a spokesperson for Qatari organizers, Fatma Al Nuaimi, told CNN’s Becky Anderson.

Harry Kane, the captain of England, and his teammates took a knee in a protest against racism before the game.

NBA players have been supported by the league for their political expression. It is a small line. Basketball has also faced criticism over its lucrative business links to China, which, like Qatar, is known for repression.

The sense that athletes may be held to higher moral standards than their government is also key to the current feud in golf. The 9/11 hijackers were made up of Saudi Arabia nationals and critics slammed pros for taking cash from them. The kingdom is a beneficiary of US arms sales, and the president went there this year to seek more oil output to alleviate high gasoline prices.

The world has changed and the tournament will show that. Despite high youth participation, soccer has struggled to become a dominant pro sport in the US. The tournament will show the hold the US has on immigrant and diaspora communities in the country.

Ever since sport went global, it’s always reflected social, cultural and religious trends and conflicts – despite calls from purists for it to remain a safe space from politics. So it is likely that when the football circus arrives, there will be more controversy about it than about the score.

FIFA World Cup Explanation: Qatar’s First World Cup Final and its First Soccer World Cup Challenge – A Tale of Two Cities and Three Cities

Qatar had never previously appeared at a World Cup tournament – let alone staged one – and became the first host nation to lose the opening game of the tournament with a 2-0 defeat against Ecuador on Sunday.

It faced several difficulties during the bidding process, as it was flagged up with concerns by the world governing body of football. Those included a lack of existing infrastructure and the region’s intense heat in the summer, when World Cup tournaments are traditionally held.

Blatter said FIFA amended the criteria it used to select host countries in 2012 in light of concerns over the working conditions at tournament-related construction sites in Qatar.

US prosecutors viewed football’s world governing body as having been almost hijacked by a group of corrupt individuals, so they gave it victim status.

Human rights organizations have found that since 2010 migrant workers have been forced to work in hot weather and long hours due to the country’s sponsorship system.

The health, safety and dignity of all workers employed on our projects has remained steadfast, with significant improvements made around workers’ rights, said the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino also told CNN Sport’s Amanda Davies that he has seen “great evolution” in Qatar’s labor reforms, and the International Labor Organization has noted reformes like a non-discriminatory minimum wage that Qatar is the first in the region to adopt.

The country of South Africa has hosted hundreds of international and regional sporting events since it won the 2010 World Cup, it said in a statement sent to CNN.

“Everyone is welcome in Qatar, but we are a conservative country and any public display of affection, regardless of orientation, is frowned upon. We don’t ask for much, but people to respect our culture.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/23/football/qatar-fifa-world-cup-explainer-spt-intl/index.html

The FIFA No Discrimination Campaign: The Name of the Biggest Players in the Business & the Road Towards a Better World Cup

The decision to stage it in November and December is one of the signs that this World Cup is not the usual June and July event.

The switch was made because of the heat in the summer months of Qatar, but the temperature is still expected to rise later this week.

FIFA announced earlier on Monday that it had brought forward its “No Discrimination” campaign – which also has a designated armband – adding that “all 32 captains will have the opportunity to wear this armband” during the World Cup.

If the past few days are any indication, the World Cup’s legacy is likely to be complicated and controversial.

The 24 hours that followed, a flurry of meetings and threats and raised voices and brinkmanship, are just a memory this weekend, as Argentina and France prepare to play in the World Cup final on Sunday. Many of the participants in the talks have asked for anonymity because they weren’t allowed to talk to the news media, so this article is based on interviews with them.

Traditionally billions of viewers watch the World Cup, and as they concentrate on what is happening on the pitch, the names of some of the world’s biggest companies flash behind the players on a rolling, technicolored loop – Budweiser, Visa, Coca-Cola, Qatar Airways, Adidas, McDonalds, Wanda, Vivo, Hyundai Kia.

Infantino predicts an $11 billion revenue when the World Cup is held in the US, Mexico and Canada.

The Globalization of Consumer Brands During the FIFA World Cup: The Impact on Human Rights in South Africa, Latin America, and South America

Beckham’s brand is arguably as recognizable as many multinationals. As well as his ambassadorship with Qatar, Beckham has endorsements with Adidas, the Tudor watch brand and his own whiskey brand, Haig Club. Beckham is part of the Inter Miami ownership team.

“I think when engaging in any form of commercial relationship, but certainly a sponsorship or an endorsement [or] an ambassadorial role, carries with it geopolitical risk,” Simon Chadwick, professor of sport and geopolitical economy at SKEMA Business School, tells CNN Sport.

The consumer base for brands associated with these countries is all around the world, meaning consumers with different rights to criticize human rights issues.

As an example, ethical consumers in Western Europe or in North America can be considered part of the split of a brand’s customer base. And they would have gone into the tournament knowing that,” Ben Peppi, head of sports services at JMW Solicitors, tells CNN Sport.

FIFA’s shift towards companies based outside of Western Europe and North America was accelerated by the exodus of some sponsors following the 2015 corruption scandal involving FIFA, but also reflects the globalization of Asian consumer brands, Peppi adds.

Some brands that sponsor the World Cup in Saudi Arabia drape their logos in rainbow flags and run inclusive campaigns to show support for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Questioning (LGBT) people during Pride Month.

Meanwhile, German supermarket chain Rewe ended its partnership with the German Football Association after FIFA’s decision to punish players wearing “OneLove” armbands that aimed to promote inclusivity.

Companies have remained relatively quiet during the competition, one of the biggest, most lucrative events in sport, despite the fact that many of these examples are from national team sponsors.

The World Cup is one of the most valuable pieces of intellectual property, if not the most valuable, and it is tightly controlled and governed.

According to Amnesty, four sponsors – AB InBev/Budweiser, Adidas, Coca-Cola, and McDonald’s – stated their support for financial compensation to migrant workers and their families who suffered death or injury, wage theft or debt from illegal recruitment while preparing the tournament.

The Supreme Committee for the delivery of the World Cup, the International Labor Organization and trade unions have been engaged with by Adidas to improve the human rights situation. The establishment of an independent ILO office as a local monitoring body, the strengthened rights of migrant workers and a national minimum wage are all part of the progress achieved.

Coca-Cola said in a statement to CNN that “it has played an instrumental role in the creation of the FIFA Human Rights Advisory Board, the first such entity created by a global sports governing body.”

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/17/football/brands-sponsors-david-beckham-world-cup-2022-spt-intl/index.html

The Impact of the World Cup on Sport: David Beckham, Founder and CEO of the Coca-Cola Company, Adidas and Mcdonalds

David Beckham is an ambassador for Qatar and a former captain of England. Beckham was put under scrutiny by the British comedian Joe Lycett, who last month challenged the widely held assumption that the former England captain was a LGBTQ ally.

He’s trying to get the attention of decision makers involved in elite professional sport around the world. What he’s interested in is making sure that his [Inter Miami] franchise in the United States is financially sustainable.”

David Beckham has participated in several World Cup and other major tournaments as a player and an ambassador, and he believes that sport has the power to be a force for good in the world.

The Coca-Cola company was an official sponsor of the Pride event in London. Earlier this year, the Visa Everywhere Initiative LGBTQ+ Special Edition Competition recognized LGBTQ+ founders transforming the FinTech Industry.

Adidas supports unrestricted access for all visitors regardless of race, religion or sexual orientation. We expect the World Cup to be fully accessible to all visitors. If there are any issues, we are looking into them.

A report says that the World Cup has generated a record-breaking television audience because of the high-profile matches, like Saudi Arabia’s shock victory over Argentina and Messi’s quest for a World Cup trophy.

Mcdonalds launched its largest global marketing campaign ever to coincide with the World Cup, according to its Global Chief Marketing Officer.

And on the day the World Cup began, FIFA announced it had “sold out all sponsorship tiers” and that the tournament would be backed by a “full quota of Partners, Sponsors and Regional Supporters.”