The Arab world was in a state of euphoria for over a month during the world’s most popular sporting carnival, the FIFA World Cup, and rightfully so. The footballing spectacle started with underdogs Saudi Arabia toppling mighty Argentina and then saw underdogs Morocco reach the semi-final. However, the biggest source of pride for Arabs is that all this sporting action has happened at “home,” with Qatar hosting the Middle East’s first World Cup.
Despite this swelling of pride, however, the World Cup has also highlighted Qatar’s poor human rights record, raising questions about whether FIFA was right to award the tiny Gulf country hosting rights more than a decade ago. Human rights groups have for years pointed to Qatar’s discriminatory kafala or sponsorship system, wherein employers are legally enabled to confiscate the passports of migrant workers and subject them to slavery.
It is estimated that almost 6,500 migrant workers have died constructing stadiums since 2010, when Qatar became the World Cup host. Qatar has not only brushed aside demands from the international community that it compensate the families of victims but has also done little to address the plight of migrants.
From @TheAthleticFC:
— The New York Times (@nytimes) November 16, 2022
We’ve wrestled with how to cover the World Cup, from whether to send reporters to Qatar to if we boycott the country’s name so we’re not complicit in sportswashing. There’s no straightforward, right answer. This is what we’ve decided.https://t.co/12ZEqwybwl pic.twitter.com/KvOvRHDLQw
Moreover, Doha prescribes the death penalty for same-sex relations and discrimination against women persists, particularly through the male guardianship system, which requires the permission of a male “guardian” for women to make key life decisions. Freedom of expression and assembly are also severely curtailed in Qatar, where criticism against the ruling Al Thani family is not tolerated.
Against this backdrop, the World Cup once again put Qatar’s human rights abuses into sharp focus, with hundreds of articles about the plight of migrant workers and the LGBTQ community.
FIFA wants the world to enjoy football and sportsmanship while it helps cover the human rights abuses committed by the government of #Qatar.
— Human Rights Foundation (@HRF) December 8, 2022
It’s time to stand up against authoritarian sportswashing. pic.twitter.com/L50jURpWzx
In addition, Qatar reportedly spent millions bribing FIFA officials to secure hosting rights for 2022, wherein even governments colluded with the Gulf country in return for political favours. For example, the Thai government allegedly agreed to give its vote to Qatar in return for an energy deal. The French government reportedly promised to give its vote to Qatar if the country invested in Paris’s cash-strapped football club Paris Saint-Germain. More recently, the European Union has been caught in a corruption scandal after several European Parliament members were arrested for receiving bribes from Qatari officials to tone down the bloc’s criticism of Doha.
Furthermore, the US signed a multibillion-dollar defence deal with Qatar as Washington and its Gulf allies seek to contain attacks by Iran’s proxies. Germany agreed to a deal to receive natural gas from Qatar for 15 years to compensate for its reduction of energy imports from Russia. Similarly, Qatar signed a $60 billion deal to supply natural gas to China for 27 years.
Qatar’s global image has been further boosted by the fact that investors and football fans from across the world have flocked to the country in record numbers. In fact, FIFA earned a record $7.5 billion in investments and commercial deals linked to the World Cup, almost $1 billion more than the previous tournament. This year’s World Cup saw an attendance of 2.45 million spectators, the highest in the tournament’s history.
Accusations of ‘sportswashing’ have dogged Qatar throughout the World Cup, but it’s not the first regime to seek credibility through sport
— James Rogers (@DrJamesRogers) December 12, 2022
On today’s podcast I’m joined by @HistoryMartin to explore ‘sportswashing’ from the 1936 Hitler Olympics to now https://t.co/Puz6ZYKG2s pic.twitter.com/32BcgDi5ym
Some have said this can be attributed to Qatar’s aggressive public relations strategy. However, it is not as though the Qatari government’s disregard for human rights has gone unnoticed, both among the people and in the media. In essence, this world cup has merely provided yet more evidence of the fact that, when push comes to shove, realism takes precedence over liberal values, even for the self-proclaimed arbiters and protectors of these rights and freedoms.
At the same time, it shows how authoritarian regimes can use mega-sporting events to accrue greater international legitimacy. Qatar is by no means the first autocratic government to have indulged in “sportswashing.”
For instance, Nazi Germany successfully hosted the 1936 Summer Olympics despite massacring millions of Jews and other minorities. Similarly, the Argentinian military dictatorship hosted the FIFA World Cup in 1978 despite committing mass atrocities against activists. The 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia and this year’s Winter Olympics in China are other examples where “sportswashing” has worked.
From Dr Nass Mohamad, Qatar's first out gay male.
— Craig Foster (@Craig_Foster) December 8, 2022
Corporate LGBTI and human rights solidarity, like migrant workers, when it costs nothing.
Human rights aren’t to be discarded when convenient.
There are real people at risk behind the slogans.#Qatar2022 pic.twitter.com/FjwzYykyKi
As a result, increased criticism of Qatar has not prevented other countries with questionable human rights records from bidding for upcoming sports tournaments. In fact, Saudi Arabia and Morocco, accused of committing grave abuses against minorities, are frontrunners to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup. Moreover, Qatar itself has already hosted several major sporting events over the last few years, including in tennis, volleyball, boxing, basketball, and athletics, and is in contention for organising future sports competitions as well.
Ultimately, the 2022 FIFA World Cup generated sufficient awareness about the host country’s dismal human rights record. However, this criticism ultimately had little to no impact, with Qatar either denying the allegations in their entirety or promising change to give the semblance of reform with no actual intention of doing so. Despite various Western actors presenting the event as a clash of ideologies and values, the World Cup has shown that such differences are of little importance in the grander scheme of international relations.