The FIFA World Cup was a welcomed event after the COVID-19 pandemic. Personally, it seemed as though I could not focus on anything but the games and even though my team lost, I had a great time watching the matches. This particular World Cup was marred with a number of controversies. Most of it was surrounding the human rights violation within the country- in terms of workers involved in building the stadium.
According to a BBC article, FIFA claimed that the 2022 World Cup was carbon neutral, a statement that is untrue and falls under the reign of greenwashing. In 2010, FIFA announced Qatar as the host country which confused a number of people. The World Cup is usually held in the summer months but considering that temperatures in Qatar can often rise above 45°C in the summer it would be dangerous for players and spectators. Secondly, Qatar did not have the infrastructure to host a global football (for the purpose of this blog I will use football for soccer) event. An estimated 9 new stadiums had to be built in the small city of Doha in the space of 10-12 years for which there was simply no space (Lockwood, 2023).
Due to space concerns , Qatar developed a new city (Lusail) to house stadiums. It seems bizarre to me that for an event that lasts about a month, a new city had to be developed which inevitably produced a significant amount of pollution in an extremely short time frame. Not only that but because of the lack of labour, Qatar brought in migrant workers from countries like India and Nepal who were housed in extremely poor conditions with little to no pay. In hindsight, Qatar seemed like the least prepared host country at the time of its ‘election’.
Lusail Stadium
https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/infrastructure/a41993731/2022-fifa-world-cup-stadiums-in-qatar/
I absolutely love to watch football and I do believe that it is a sport that has the power to bring together strangers but we also have to be mindful of the fact that organizations like FIFA have been given an immense amount of power which they seem to be misusing. There has to be a way to use the game to help the world, which is why I was really thrilled to find that there are teams of footballers who use their talent to speak out against environmental malpractice. We Play Green is a non-profit that uses the power of football to rally people to develop infrastructure that aligns with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. It is a great step which definitely deserves more global support to bring together fans to create a difference through something they love.
References:
Lockwood, D. (2023, February 22). Is FIFA’s football expansion putting money before planet? BBC Sport. Retrieved March 10, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/64717357
Good read! You are right, it is concerning to hear about the human rights violations and environmental impacts associated with the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. I think initiatives like We Play Green can use football as a platform to promote sustainable development goals. In the long run, I believe it is important for organizations like FIFA to use their power and influence to promote positive change and leave a lasting positive impact on the world.
Great perspective. I knew how the host country failed to pay a lot of workers who built the stadium but did not pay attention to how FIFA has power and how it is affecting us. Also, it was really interesting that you mentioned how Lusail was developed. From my perspective, I am also concerned with the use of those stadiums. If stadiums are built somewhere close to each other in the city, wouldn’t it become to use all of them frequently? I do not know a lot about the city so I love to hear your opinion, thank you.
Great article. I completely agree on Qatar being the most underprepared country to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and additionally, the number of human rights and environmental laws that have been violated in order to make it come true is greater.
I also feel that what if the amount of money spent on putting up an entire city for the world cup was used for other purposes that would help the environment. Your thoughts?
Hi Karan,
Absolutely, I definitely think we’re at a point where we need to be considering allocating resources to make sustainability at the forefront of operations. I especially think that governments have a huge role to play in creating policy that provide a way to really tackle the climate crisis rather than just think about furthering a monetary agenda.