The 2022 World Cup in Qatar is full of controversy… Here's why.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Why is Qatar facing so much backlash as host of the 2022 FIFA World Cup?
00:05Since the Gulf nation was announced as host 12 years ago,
00:08the decision has been marred by controversy,
00:11with allegations of human rights violations and widespread corruption.
00:14It's not for me!
00:16Now, many are calling for a boycott of the sport's premiere event.
00:26Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar,
00:28with offenders facing up to seven years in prison and hefty fines.
00:32We have evidence and testimony of forced abductions,
00:36of detention without trial, of torture and of conversion therapy.
00:41In the run-up to the global event,
00:43soccer superstar David Beckham,
00:45who has been praised in the past for his vocal support of the LGBTQ plus community,
00:50came under fire for signing a deal worth upwards of $200 million
00:54to be an ambassador for Qatar for the next 10 years.
00:58It's another beautiful day here in Qatar.
01:01One British comedian gave the former English national team captain a costly ultimatum.
01:07If you end your relationship with Qatar,
01:08I'll donate this 10 grand of my own money
01:11to charities that support queer people in football.
01:14However, if you do not, at midday next Sunday,
01:17I will throw this money into a shredder.
01:19Not just the money, but also your status as a gay icon will be shredded.
01:24Concerns have been raised for LGBTQ plus fans and players travelling for the event,
01:28who activist groups say could face discrimination under Qatari law.
01:32As players, we fully support the rights of the LGBTI plus people.
01:36But in Qatar, people are not free to love the person that they choose.
01:39FIFA president Gianni Infantino and Qatari officials have vehemently denied accusations
01:45that LGBTQ plus fans could face danger during the tournament.
01:49Fans come with rainbow flags.
01:51Look, we've always said that everybody is welcome here.
01:54All we ask is for people to be respectful of the culture.
01:56Gay fans, if they were holding hands in public, would that be OK?
02:00Yes.
02:00Everyone will be welcomed to the tournament,
02:05regardless of their origin, background, religion,
02:09gender, sexual orientation or nationality.
02:12Well, I can tell you I'm not welcome in Qatar.
02:14So that statement is false.
02:15This is now the first time ever like LGBT issues in Qatar are being discussed.
02:21Qatar has faced intense criticism over the mistreatment of low-wage migrant workers
02:30hired to build the massive infrastructure needed for the competition.
02:34Foreign workers make up nearly 90% of the country's workforce.
02:38These are people who are facing a range of horrible labour exploitation,
02:41ranging from paying large fees in their home countries before they come,
02:46given false promises about the work on offer,
02:49having their passports confiscated,
02:51living in poor and dirty accommodation,
02:54being threatened for complaining about their situation.
02:56And some of these workers also were subjected to forced labour,
02:59forced to work against their own will.
03:01Under the Kafala system of sponsorship-based employment in Qatar,
03:05foreign workers are legally bound to their employers.
03:08Until recently, this system prevented workers from changing jobs
03:11or even leaving the country without their employer's permission.
03:14Someone basically owns you.
03:16Someone decides very big aspects of your life,
03:20from what time you wake up to what time you go to sleep,
03:23what type of food you eat, where you live,
03:25who you associate with, even if you associate with anyone.
03:28While the Qatari government has passed some reforms for workers' rights,
03:32including within the Kafala system,
03:34groups like Amnesty International and the International Labour Organization
03:38say they haven't gone far enough.
03:40Calls for FIFA to take action against the alleged abuses
03:43have largely gone unanswered.
03:45A lot of construction workers died in building the stadiums there,
03:49and you were the boss.
03:51What would you say to the families?
03:52They were looking for opportunities to work.
03:56This is a national matter and this is not a matter of FIFA.
03:59In early 2021, The Guardian released an explosive report
04:03estimating that 6,500 foreign workers had died
04:07since Qatar was awarded the World Cup.
04:09Qatari officials, meanwhile, offered an estimate of 37 deaths of migrant workers,
04:15primarily attributed to natural causes.
04:17The exact number of World Cup-related tragedies
04:19has not been confirmed by official sources.
04:26When Qatar was awarded the bid to host in 2010,
04:29allegations of corruption immediately followed.
04:32Without much of a soccer past, a sweltering summer temperatures
04:35and little infrastructure to host an event of this scale,
04:38many question the legitimacy of the decision for years to come.
04:41There are now allegations that some FIFA executives
04:44took bribes to put the World Cup in Qatar,
04:46and I hope that's true,
04:48because otherwise it makes literally no sense.
04:51One Qatari whistleblower alleged that several African officials
04:54had been paid upwards of $1 million to vote in favor of Qatar.
04:58Though Qatar was officially cleared of any wrongdoing by FIFA,
05:02the cloud of suspicion remained over both the host nation
05:05and the organization for years to come.
05:07I do not admit that there is corruption in FIFA.
05:10I admit that people are corrupt, but not FIFA.
05:14FIFA as an organization is not corrupt.
05:17In 2020, the U.S. Justice Department released an indictment
05:20accusing three former FIFA officials of accepting bribes
05:24in order to vote for Qatar.
05:25The Qatari government vehemently denied the accusations.
05:33After being awarded the bid, Qatari officials pledged
05:36that the event would be carbon neutral.
05:37But watch groups have said that this promise
05:39is nearly impossible to keep given the infrastructure needs
05:43of the competition, which includes seven air-conditioned stadiums,
05:47hotels, roads, transportation systems,
05:50not to mention all the air travel that will bring people
05:53from all over the world to Qatar for the event.
05:55Carbon neutrality can only be achieved
05:59if there is an effective reduction of emissions
06:03and not compensation.
06:05Though the Gulf nation has been praised
06:06for its innovative building methods,
06:08event organizers have been accused of greenwashing
06:11and understating the event's true environmental impact.
06:14You start by the beginning, you know, the whole construction.
06:16It's too late now.
06:17There's no way the World Cup can be carbon neutral.