Destroyer of a World Heritage Site
The dirty World Cup anticipation of Qatar
A comment by Tobias Nordmann
04/01/2022, 06:05 am
Internationally, anticipation for the soccer World Cup in Qatar is, well, subdued. The boss of FIFA sees it differently. He senses the best World Cup in history in the desert state. What an absurd farce. But the Swiss no longer cares about his reputation.
Home games are a beautiful thing. The Swiss Gianni Infantino is no exception. The FIFA boss is looking forward to the “best World Cup in history” at the end of this year. And then also in his home country. In Qatar. The Swiss now lives there. With his “brothers”, as he calls the hosts of the intercontinental autumn and winter championship. Does it all sound made up? Unfortunately no, Gianni Infantino did an impressive job this Thursday in a spectacular long-distance duel with IOC President Thomas Bach for the crown of the world’s most despised sports official (despite the joint ban on Russian athletes as a result of the war in Ukraine).
While Bach willingly acted as the Chinese leadership’s chief propagandist at the Beijing Olympics, Infantino is not at all satisfied with the role of “wingman” at the sink of sportswashing. He much prefers to dip his hands deep into the dirty water and scrub diligently. He doesn’t really have to do that. After all, the awarding of the World Cup to the desert state is not part of his, but rather the horror and debt of his predecessor Joseph Blatter. His grin when opening the envelope has been branded as one of the scariest moments in recent football history.
Just don’t criticize Putin
But Infantino doesn’t care. For him, football is just a “cash cow” and where the udder is fullest, that’s where he puts his milking stool and celebrates. Also happy to be at the side of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is currently shaking the world with a war of aggression against Ukraine, and who presented the Swiss with the “Order of Friendship” a year after the 2018 World Cup in Russia. He does not think of returning the award. He still celebrates the tournament to this day, even if it “didn’t solve the problems of the world, not even of the region”. Lively cuddling with autocrats. A passion of Infantino, who at the FIFA Congress in Doha named after the depressing video message from the head of the Ukrainian association in a bulletproof vest from the war zone with no silver what Putin’s approach is: a war of aggression that breaks international law.
Well, not only do you hate to anger your great friend, but also your envoys. Cynically, unlike Ukraine, Russia had sent a delegation to the FIFA Congress in the desert state. That an expulsion of the association was not even put to the vote, that Infantino quickly went back to business as usual and once again proved how much he likes to cuddle with autocrats. What does he care about the dirt around it, after all he didn’t bring it here. “We are not responsible for all the evil in the world and we cannot solve all problems. But we can give hope,” Infantino said in Doha. There, where the way to the best World Cup will be paved in the afternoon when the draw for the groups (from 6 p.m.) is due. With Lothar Matthaus.
Criticism of Qatar? All just fanfare!
Also a legend that considers the critical fanfare about the host to be quite excessive. Journalistic banter he called the reporting at the FIFA gala in January “The Best”. Well, all those who were or are affected by the human rights violations, the catastrophic conditions on the World Cup construction sites or the persecution (eg homosexuals) in the country will certainly see things very differently. Despite all the supposedly small advances that Infantino is already proclaiming as a “legacy”. But well, freedom of speech applies in this country (there is actually no dictatorship of opinion, as is claimed in some circles). In Qatar, on the other hand, freedom of speech is not so easy.
But hey, what’s the hoopla. Let talk, as the saying goes. Incidentally, this also applies to a woman from Norway, who stirred up the big world association show in Doha with barking criticism. The reaction in the hall to the remarkable speech by association president Lise Klaveness was mainly as follows: What is this person actually doing there? Shortly thereafter, the Honduran representative pointed out that football was at stake. Infantino’s troops work. The debates about boycotts of associations such as Norway or protest actions for human rights, including the German Football Association (sometimes more, sometimes less honestly presented), bounce off the Swiss FIFA family as ineffectively as the crazy millions of investor Lars Windhorst to Hertha BSC.
And in this intimate circle of loved ones (or beneficiaries), nobody is really interested in the fact that the creative source of megalomania of the Swiss constantly runs dry somewhere. For example, the idea of a World Cup every two years. If Infantino weren’t the boss of FIFA, but the CEO of a commercial enterprise, he would no longer be sustainable. Or long history of the group. So he is just on the best way to go down in history as the “destroyer of football as a World Heritage Site”. According to his plan, this should be extended by a third term as boss of the world association. And indeed there are quite a number of national federations that subscribe to his vision, which court him mightily.
Yay, a winter fairy tale
Soccer, Advent wreath, Christmas carols, mulled wine and dominoes – it really has to be the best World Cup in history. Especially since the footballers are finally contesting a tournament in which they are full of energy and do not arrive at the scene of the action completely exhausted after a sapping season. It’s just the best time for a tournament like this. That’s how Infantino sees it. A World Cup of strength, the big show (no one really wants to deny that) and hope. But for whom? For African refugees who are fighting for their lives and a better future on the Mediterranean? Ah, no, Infantino’s bizarre words had been misinterpreted.
The fans maybe? The people in Europe (depending on the corona situation) sitting or standing in the warm living rooms or by the patio heater in the garden (greetings to sustainability) will probably already be using Qatari gas in Germany thanks to the very fresh energy partnership. Well, probably no. In fact, right away one can’t think of anyone who draws hope from a tournament of gigantism in an unjust state. Except for potential sponsors who place their milking stools next to Infantino and hope for a sip of the dirty but expensive milk.
