Boycotting the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar – What Is Happening?

The most popular and most viewed sports event is definitely the FIFA World Cup. It is a competition that everyone is eagerly expecting and the wait is what makes it even more exciting. In the year 2022, the cup will take place in Qatar and it will be in November, because of the weather in Qatar. Due to massive heat, Qatar wanted to air-condition the whole stadium but in the end, it was decided to be moved for November. However, now there are rumors or invitations to boycott this year’s FIFA Cup. Here’s why. 

Who is Calling for the Boycott?

It would appear that western countries are the ones that want people to boycott this event. The argument is that Qatar bought the rights to host the tournament. Moreover, there are concerns about human rights and labor conditions. There are rumors that some people who are working on the preparation of the stadium died during the construction, which is not hard to believe due to the weather conditions and pressures to complete the preparations. Additionally, the reason for the boycott is the general situation in Qatar where human rights for women and the gay population are abysmal.  

Qatar on the other hand discarded these allegations. They also stated the work conditions there have significantly improved compared to some of its neighboring countries. Moreover, they said their bid was the best one for the Cup selection, and that they are a nation that is very passionate about football and hosting the event. 

Is This True?

It’s difficult to ascertain what is true and what is not because it boils down to – he said, she said. Moreover, this is not the first time FIFA and corruption stories found one another. The 2018 World Cup was hosted in Russia and the same accusations were present even at that time. However, the same thing also happened when Germany was hosting the World Cup, and right now that same country is very vocal about the accusation. 

So, the media and people are vocal about this boycott but it doesn’t seem that it will go through. So far not a single team has decided to boycott this tournament. Moreover, if the goal here is inclusion and diversity, then excluding Qatar from hosting rights doesn’t seem democratic, especially if the tournaments were held in the past even when the same accusations were flying around. 

There is almost no doubt that a country that qualified for a world cup would choose to boycott the event. Football fans would go to enjoy the spectacle no matter what. But it is also true that Qatar has to do more if they want the world to believe their efforts are genuine.