Will Qatar screw up when hosting the World Cup
2022.11.18 11:30
Will Qatar screw up when hosting the World Cup
Budrigannews.com – A moment of truth has come for Qatar’s ability to organize the World Cup after years of failed overtures and criticism of labor rights and strict laws.
In 2010, it was announced that Qatar would host the finals amid a storm of international criticism.
“For me, Qatar is a mistake and a bad choice,” Sepp Blatter, the former president of FIFA, the governing body of world soccer, said last week.
Always held during the closed season for the majority of the league, with temperatures reaching more than 45 degrees Celsius in the burning summer of Qatar, it was difficult to maintain such a schedule.
Two surveys conducted by FIFA in 2014 and 2015 concluded that it was impossible to hold the tournament from 6 to 7 months, moving to 11 and 12 months.
Building a new stadium has witnessed many controversies over labor rights amid media reports that thousands of foreign workers have lost their lives or been abused in the process.
Qatar responded by changing its labor laws to contain global dismay.
In addition, Qatar’s strict Islamic laws on Lgbt rights and alcohol consumption faced yet another storm of criticism.
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, the emir of Qatar, told the UN General Assembly on May 9 last year that his government was ready to welcome everyone around the world without discrimination.
Qatar Olympic high Jump champion Mutaz Balsim, World Cup ambassador, said the tournament is an opportunity to unite the people.
“The World Cup will have a positive impact on our society by introducing our culture to the world and helping people create friendships and networks, which is a great opportunity to change negative perceptions about the region and create new meaningful connections,” he said in an interview with the Qatar 2022 website on Wednesday.
Qatar will be the first team to take part in the final for the first time as host without previously qualifying for the tournament since Italy at the Second World Cup in 1934.
To avoid a similar fate with Switzerland, Chile and South Africa, all the hosts, but the Qatar team, which ended the finals in the group stage in 1954, 1962 and 2010, has gone through a thorough process of preparation for the tournament.
It began with the appointment of Spanish coach Felix Sánchez in 2017, and the knowledge of the region led Qatar to the 2019 Asian Cup title and won all the matches in the process.
Sanchez’s men raised eyebrows with a number of notable performances, including a 3-1 defeat of Japan in the final.
The team took part in Copa America 2019 and continued to prepare, rubbing shoulders with the best teams in South America.
Nevertheless, the experience turned out to be a little too much for the team, as they finished the bottom of the group following the defeats of Colombia and Argentina and the draw of Paraguay.
Qatar, as well, participated in last year’s CONCACAF Gold Cup, which, upon special request, showed improvement before they topped their group and lost 1-0 to the United States in the semifinals by beating El Salvador in the quarterfinals.
The team will continue to play after the decision of the Qatari Federation not to allow players to play in domestic clubs from the beginning of the current season, especially in order to devote themselves to preparing for the finals.、
