En the day before the opening game, this already controversial soccer World Cup in Qatar created its first tangible scandal. Shortly before 11 a.m. local time in Doha, Fifa boss Gianni Infantino sat down on the oversized podium in the press center’s “Virtual Stadium”. The ball and two energy drinks were on the table in front of him, with spokesman Bryan Swanson next to him. Then the Swiss went into a monologue that lasted one hour and 21 seconds. It was partly an incredible perspective from a parallel world of the president of the world association.
“Today I feel very strong feelings, today I feel Qatari, today I feel Arab, today I feel African. Today I feel homosexual. Today I feel handicapped. Today I feel like a migrant worker,” said Infantino. He has been very quiet over the past few months, working and observing behind the scenes and doing his best, the official said.
Infantino’s monologue lasted more than an hour and took on bizarre traits
Which: AFP/GABRIEL BOUYS
“I am the son of guest workers, my parents worked hard in Switzerland. I had red hair, freckles, was excluded. You have to make friends. Do not insult or accuse others, but get involved. That’s what we want to do here.” An incredibly mocking statement in the face of persecuted minorities and oppressed women in the World Cup host country.
“Why isn’t anyone seeing the progress?”
He visited workers in Qatar and said: “It’s not good, it’s not right. Something has to happen.” It’s not easy to read all this criticism every day. We know we have to make the best of it, put on the best World Cup ever.”
He read a study by Human Rights Watch: “25,000 people have died since 2014 as a result of European migration policies. Why is nobody demanding that the families of these people be compensated? Are they worth less? European companies earn millions here. How many cared about the migrant workers? No one. We do. FIFA and Qatar. These moral, one-sided lessons from Europe are bigoted. Why is no one seeing the progress? Minimum wage, protection from the heat, abolition of the kafala system? Reform and change take time.”
Sharia stipulates 40 to 80 strokes of the stick for alcohol consumption
There will be no beer in the stadiums at the World Cup in Qatar. This was announced by the hosts just two days before the start of the tournament. A reason for the surprising turnaround was not given.
In addition, Fifa would want to set up a contact point for migrant workers, only formalities would be missing. “How many of these Western companies that are receiving billions from Qatar here, how many of them have spoken out about migrant workers’ rights? None of them,” Infantino said, without giving examples. “Who takes care of the workers? Who? Fifa does it, football does it, the World Cup does it and, to be fair, Qatar does it too.”
He doesn’t understand why the progress in Qatar isn’t recognized, said the Fifa President, who incidentally has had his primary residence in Doha for ten months. “This way of wanting to teach lessons one-sidedly is hypocritical,” said the most powerful football boss in the world.
Infantino caused a stir last week when he proposed a month-long ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine during the World Cup. Appearing at the G20 summit of the main developed and emerging countries in Bali on Tuesday, Infantino, 52, suggested that from the start of the World Cup on Sunday until the final on December 18, guns will be kept silent. “We are not naive and think that football can solve the world’s problems,” said the head of the world football association. However, the World Cup could be “an occasion for a positive gesture or a sign”.
Infantino downplays the beer ban
In Doha on Saturday he also commented on the prevailing beer ban during the World Cup, which starts on Sunday with the game between the hosts and Ecuador: “If beer is the biggest problem, then I’ll lie down on the beach until December 18th .” Every decision is made jointly between Qatar and Fifa, discussed and then decided. “There are ten fan zones and around 200 places in Qatar where you can drink alcohol. If you can’t do that for three hours, you’ll survive that too. The same rules apply in France, Spain and Scotland. There’s no beer with football either. I don’t know why it’s so special here.”
“We are experiencing relatively dead pants here”
“Tourists and World Cup fans have not yet come in droves,” reports Steffen Schwarzkopf from Doha. Qatar is expecting up to 1.2 million fans over the course of the World Cup, but the WELT reporter cannot really imagine that so far.
Source: WORLD / Steffen Schwarzkopf
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