The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Background
Confirmation
Refutation and Concession
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

For the first time in the history of the FIFA World Cup, it will take place in the Middle Eastern region. For the first time, it will take place in Qatar. For the first time, FIFA World Cup will be held in winter. The list could be prolonged as there are many other unusual facts and scandals associated with this event. That is why the 2022 Qatar World Cup has been subject to huge amounts of scrutiny since its announcement of hosting the Cup.

Nevertheless, the given tournament plays a significant role in the football world as the most prominent players and national teams come to the host country, which is selected among numerous candidates. In such a way, a site is chosen carefully, considering all applications, their advantages, and disadvantages. For this reason, Qatars selection triggered numerous debates and initiated the development of the bidding process scandal as organizers were blamed for bribery and subjectivity in their judgments when choosing Qatar among all other candidates (Scott).

The given accusations might also be associated with the problem of human rights breaching that is peculiar to the state. Additionally, climate and unusual timing are other concerns peculiar for football players, fans, and workers. In such a way, all these aspects gave rise to numerous issues related to the 2022 Qatar World Cup and the peculiarities of its selection. Thus, the paper delves into the issue and investigates it by suggesting the following research question:

Is FIFA benefiting financially from giving the World Cup to Qatar, and should the bidding process be changed?

It will obviously help to analyze the problem and understand the peculiarities of the given disputable issue. At the same time, we suggest our specific thesis statement that since the first accusations of bribery and scandals against FIFA, the sport has taken a massive hit causing a negative impact on the fans and the athletes within.

Background

The FIFA World Cup is the greatest event in the football world. It is an international competition organized among the members of the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) every four years (“History of FIFA – Foundation”). The given federation was founded in 1904 to promote and support international football competition among the national teams of Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherland, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland (“History of FIFA – Foundation”).

In 1930 FIFA organized the first World Cup in Uruguay, which has become one of the greatest events and shows in modern sport (“History of FIFA – The first FIFA World Cup”). It attracts millions of fans, spectators, players, sponsors, and guarantees multimillion incomes. For this reason, numerous countries try to acquire the right to organize this championship.

However, there is a special procedure that is introduced with the primary aim to guarantee the fair and objective selection of the most appropriate place for a new World Cup. A special board considers applications and issues a verdict that is accepted by all states belonging to FIFA. However, today we could observe numerous scandals associated with the procedure of bidding and its results. For this reason, Qatars bid was investigated by the FBI and other agencies for bribery and corruption.

Thus, in 2011, allegations of bribery were suggested by Lord Triesman, a member of the English FA (Nanji). These allegations rested on the pieces of evidence provided by a FIFA official who was involved in the bid (Nanji). In other words, some members who voted for Qatars application were paid to ensure their support (Nanji). For instance, representatives of Cameroon and Ivory Coast both acquired $1,5 million (Scott). Some other officials were also suggested huge sums of money.

The given allegation gave rise to a well-known bidding scandal stating that Qatar bought its right to host the world cup and gathered FIFA executives support in this way. It triggered numerous debates and discussions among officials and fans who were offended by the fact of bribery. The complexity of the situation was evidenced by the fact that the President of FIFA, Sepp Blatter, had to resign because of numerous accusations of corruption (“Fifa Corruption Crisis: Key Questions Answered”). However, Qatar denied any inappropriate actions or corruption, insisting on the fact that the country was chosen on a fair basis and all rules were observed (Nanji). Additionally, insinuations of this sort might undermine relations within FIFA and result in the deterioration of the World Cups image.

At the same time, there is another perspective on the given scandal. Adherers of this point of view state that the investigation was initiated under the impact of discriminative attitude to the Gulf States and numerous stereotypes associated with the given region (Scott). Additionally, some specialists are sure that the 2022 Qatar World Cup will help to promote football across the world by engaging new nations in it (Nanji). In such a way, the given state is the perfect place for the diversification of football fans and the appearance of new admirers (“Fifa Corruption Crisis: Key Questions Answered”).

Several research methods are integrated across the study. Trying the prove the assumption that the scandal has promoted a negative impact on FIFA, football fans, and players, we will interview some professionals within the sport to acquire data about their attitudes to the issue and how they feel about it. The following topics will be discussed within the problem to figure out the current state and answer the research question: human rights in Qatar, the change in atmosphere at the 2022 World Cup, nations response to this championship, FIFA executives involved in bribery, bidding process, and results of the poll and interview.

Confirmation

The first apparent problem that is associated with the choice of Qatar as a host is the legal prohibition of the LGBT community, alcohol, and some other strict laws related to appearance and behavior (Rumsby). At the same time, the climate of the state might be considered another challenge as both players and spectators will suffer from the extreme heat (50C, or 122F) (Rumsby). However, organizers ensure that it will not be a problem because of the creation of a specific approach to solve these issues.

First, alcohol will be sold in special fan areas (Nanji). Second, all stadiums are equipped with solar power systems that transform the sunlight into energy and use it to cool stadiums, players, and fans. Additionally, the country has already hosted some big international football events like the match between Brazil and Argentina (Rumsby). For this reason, it guarantees safety for all fans, including representatives of the LGBT society (Rumsby).

There are also fears related to working conditions and workers treatment. For instance, some sources state that many employees are deprived of food, water, and any documents which turn them into slaves (Amnesty International. “Qatar: Abuse of Migrant Workers”). Moreover, HRW appeals to introduce specific measures that will help to protect construction workers who have to act under extreme climate conditions and there are numerous deaths. Under these conditions, the state places reforms to protect workers and investigates their deaths (Amnesty International, ”Qatar 2017/2018″). Additionally, there is a traditional belief that women and children might suffer from discrimination and biased attitude. However, at the moment, Qatar cooperates with the UN to promote human rights, which means that foreign women and children might feel safe (“Qatar: Promotion of the Rule of Law and Human Rights”).

At the same time, all fans arriving in the country should consider peculiarities of the local culture and actions regarding them. For instance, they should avoid drinking alcohol but for some special places (Rumsby). Additionally, they should respect womens rights and traditional approaches to them. In other words, their relations with young women in Qatar should be tolerant. At the same time, the growth in the population and congestion, especially during the World Cup, might pose a threat to peoples security which means that they should act carefully (Scott).

Thus, one of the problems that are often associated with the 2022 Qatar World Cup is the absence of any football history which might serve as the barrier to the successful organization of the championship. However, the country has rich experience in holding international events and exhibitions (Rumsby). Additionally, its infrastructure evolves rapidly, which allows it to host the world cup (Rumsby). There are still numerous allegations of corruption and interference with the bidding process (Scott).

As it has already been stated, as the President of FIFA at that period, Sepp Blatter insisted on the fair character of voting and the absence of any cases of bribery. However, under the impact of social pressure and numerous claims to remove him, Blatter had to resign and leave his post (“Fifa Corruption Crisis: Key Questions Answered”). Nevertheless, he proclaimed that reconsideration of the results of the 2022 bid was impossible.

Speaking about the discussed bidding, one can note that much depends on final voting. Thus, the multiple exhaustive ballot system was used (“Fifa Corruption Crisis: Key Questions Answered”). All members of the FIFA Executive committee had one vote and were able to select any candidate. The country that received the lowest number of votes was eliminated (Laughland). In such a way, the only candidate remains. However, the given system is not the ideal one as numerous claims related to Qatar’s involvement with bribery prove it (Laughland). Members of the committee might be paid to vote in a certain way. It can be improved using voting at different stages during the whole process and considering fans attitudes to one or another state.

Moreover, a specific poll and interview are used to collect data about peoples attitudes to the 2022 Qatar World Cup and hypothetic bribery.

Poll:

Are you satisfied with the results of FIFA 2022 World Cup Bids?

Yes
No
It Does not matter

Do you believe in accusations of bribery?

Do you think that all difficulties (climate, time, laws) will have a pernicious impact on the World Cup?

Do you think that fans and athletes suffer from these allegations?

Interview:

What is your attitude to the 2022 Qatar World Cup?
Do you believe that all difficulties will be overcome?
Do you think that the choice of Qatar promotes the popularisation of football?
Do you believe in bribery allegations, and what effects do you think they might have on both fans and players?

Using the poll and the interview, we conclude that scandals associated with bribery obviously have a negative impact on the image of football, fans, and athletes. Additionally, the majority of respondents are sure that Qatar will be able to organize this event appropriately, which means that all bribery scandals are senseless.

Refutation and Concession

Nevertheless, opponents of the 2022 Qatar World Cup often state that the choice of this state is a poor decision because of the instability peculiar to the region and the high risk of terrorist attacks. There are numerous pieces of evidence proving the idea that such a significant event will obviously attract the attention of diverse terrorist organizations that will try to undermine the basics of society(Nanji). Additionally, some terrorist groups have already demonstrated their interest in this event (Rumsby).

However, the given argument could be refuted by the fact that in Qatar, the threat of terrorist attack is not higher than in other states. Terrorism is a global problem, and all countries might suffer from it. For this reason, the introduction of the appropriate security measures will help to eliminate this problem (Rumsby).

Conclusion

Altogether, we revealed the fact that Qatar faces some problems related to human rights and extreme climate. However, it will obviously be able to organize the championship at a high level and promote the popularisation of football. For this reason, there is no need for reconsidering the results of bids; however, the bidding process should be changed. We also prove the fact that because of the bribery and scandals of the FIFA organization, the sport has had a negative impact on fans and athletes. Thus, we should continue the evaluation of this impact to mitigate it. In conclusion, the 2022 Qatar World Cup is unique in many aspects, which makes it a perfect opportunity to make football better.