Category Archives: World Cup 2022

Iran releases two former national team footballers arrested over protests

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Both were bailed hours before Iran faces US in World Cup, following release of hundreds of other prisoners

Iran has released two former members of its international football team who were arrested on charges related to countrywide protests, just hours before the national squad was set to play the US at the World Cup.

Right-back Voria Ghafouri was detained last week and accused of tarnishing “the reputation of the national team and spreading propaganda against the state”, while retired goalkeeper Parviz Boroumand was arrested nearly two weeks ago on charges of participating in rallies in the capital, Tehran.

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OneLove armband sends ‘very divisive message’, says Qatar official

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Head of World Cup organising committee says he sees rainbow armband as protest against Islamic values

The head of Qatar’s World Cup organising committee has accused teams who wanted to wear the OneLove armband at the World Cup of sending a “very divisive message” to the Islamic and Arab world.

Hassan al-Thawadi’s comments came as the UK sports minister Stuart Andrew said he would wear the rainbow-coloured armband at the England v Wales match on Tuesday.

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How many migrant workers have died in Qatar? What we know about the human cost of the 2022 World Cup

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This year’s tournament has been dominated by off-field matters. We look at the issues around the labor used to build the tournament’s infrastructure

The deaths of migrant workers in Qatar in the build-up to this year’s World Cup have drawn criticism across the world. While the tournament’s organizers put the official count at 40, estimates by the Guardian put the figure in the thousands. Here we explore the key questions around an issue that has tarnished the World Cup for many fans.

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‘A historic moment’: Japanese World Cup hopes surge ahead of crucial Costa Rica match

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Fans believe the Samurai Blue are part of wave of teams changing the face of football after defeat of Germany

After Japan’s stunning victory over Germany in their opening match of the Qatar World Cup, fans of the Samurai Blue are daring to dream their team could reach the quarter-finals for the first time.

Their remarkable comeback last week has electrified Japan, where hardcore and casual fans alike stayed up until midnight to watch their victory over the four-time world champions.

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The World Cup tension the west is not seeing: Israelis told to keep low profile

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Though neither Israel nor Palestine are playing in the tournament, the latter has featured prominently in Qatar

One video shows an Egyptian football fan smiling serenely as an Israeli broadcaster introduces him live on air. Then he leans into the microphone with a message: “Viva Palestine.”

Another clip from the streets of Doha this week shows a group of Lebanese men walking away from a live interview with a reporter they have just learned is Israeli. One shouts over his shoulder: “There is no Israel. It’s Palestine.”

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Top Iran footballer arrested at club for ‘spreading propaganda against the state’

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Detention of Voria Ghafouri, who is not part of World Cup squad, seen as warning to players in Qatar

Iranian security forces on Thursday arrested one of the country’s most famous footballers, accusing him of spreading propaganda against the Islamic republic and seeking to undermine the national World Cup team.

Voria Ghafouri, a former member of the national football team and once a captain of the Tehran club Esteghlal, has been outspoken in his defence of Iranian Kurds, telling the government on social media to stop killing Kurdish people. He has previously been detained for criticising the former Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif.

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‘A reason to get along’: World Cup jeers turn to cheers from Qatar’s Gulf rivals

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Arab teams’ performances have changed the mood among Doha’s recent foes who had refused to share in its excitement

Before the biggest event the Middle East has ever hosted, few regional states seemed to share in its neighbour’s excitement.

As the host country, Qatar, frantically completed its plans, there were even hints of glee as finishing touches fell short. Potholed atriums, expensive rooms, an overrun airport and even the last-minute beer ban were met with knowing smirks from many Gulf citizens who refused to share in the bonhomie.

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Fifpro asks why Gabon’s FA chief was at World Cup opener when facing trial

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  • Pierre-Alain Mounguengui seen with Infantino and Qatar emir
  • Mounguengui charged with not reporting crimes of paedophilia

The international players’ union, Fifpro, has questioned why the president of the Gabonese Football Federation (Fegafoot) was allowed to attend the opening match of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar despite being charged in connection with the investigation into allegations of widespread sexual abuse in his country.

Pierre-Alain Mounguengui, who was released at the end of October after six months in preventive custody in Gabon having been charged with “failure to report crimes of paedophilia”, was pictured alongside the Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, and Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, the emir of Qatar, at Sunday’s opening ceremony at Al Bayt Stadium.

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‘Miracle of Doha’: calls for public holiday as Japan’s Samurai Blue put Germany to sword

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Victory in World Cup opener sparks street celebrations and banishes painful memories in Doha of failure to qualify for USA 1994

Japan’s shock victory over Germany in Qatar on Wednesday sparked late-night celebrations and calls to mark the Samurai Blue’s momentous feat in their 2022 World Cup opener with a public holiday.

The clock was nearing midnight when Takuma Asano rifled Japan’s winner into the roof of the net at Khalifa International Stadium in Doha – a result that had seemed impossible after a poor first half from Japan, playing in their seventh straight World Cup.

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Saudi Arabia declares public holiday to mark World Cup win over Argentina

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Region rejoices as Saudi team ‘writes history’ against South American powerhouse in group stage

Saudi Arabia has said Wednesday will be a national holiday as, on the Jeddah Corniche by the Red Sea, in the heart of the capital Riyadh and in towns and villages across the country, its seismic 2-1 World Cup win over Lionel Messi’s Argentina was celebrated as a coming of age.

The national football side’s remarkable victory was being seen as both a triumph on the pitch and a huge moment on the global sports stage, where the regional power has long sought a place in the spotlight.

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Fears grow Iran players may face reprisals for not singing national anthem

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Politician says no one will be allowed to ‘insult our anthem and flag’ as loyalist media vent fury over protests during England game

Iran’s footballers could face reprisals if they fail to sing the national anthem in their remaining World Cup group games, after a politician said the country “will never allow anyone to insult our anthem”.

The football team stayed silent while the anthem was played before their 6-2 defeat to England on Monday, in a symbolic show of support for the protest movement that has roiled Iran since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody in September.

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‘Dream come true’: young football fan thanks Jack Grealish for goal celebration

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Finlay Fisher, who has cerebral palsy, thanks England footballer for keeping promise to celebrate goal with special dance

A young football fan with cerebral palsy said seeing Jack Grealish perform their special goal celebration was “a dream come true” – and urged the England star to do “the Finlay” each time he scores.

Grealish had promised Finlay Fisher he would perform the shoulder waggle celebration after the 12-year-old wrote to him upon learning that the player’s sister Holly also has cerebral palsy. True to his word, the Manchester City forward pulled out the dance after scoring the sixth goal in England’s 6-2 win against Iran at the World Cup in Qatar on Monday.

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BBC’s Alex Scott wears rainbow armband for England World Cup match

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Pundit opts to wear OneLove armband in apparent gesture of solidarity with LGBTQ+ people in Qatar

The BBC pundit Alex Scott wore a rainbow armband as she presented coverage of England’s first match of the Qatar World Cup, in an apparent gesture of solidarity with LGBTQ+ people in a country where same-sex relationships are illegal.

Her decision to wear the OneLove armband – which officially represents a stand against all forms of discrimination – came hours after the England and Wales teams decided not to wear the same armbands after being informed that players could receive yellow cards for breaching Fifa rules on clothing.

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Iran players stay silent for anthem in apparent support for protests

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World Cup footballers did not sing before match against England in apparent show of support for protesters back home

Not a single member of the Iranian team sang their country’s national anthem at the start of their World Cup match with England, in an attempt to distance themselves from their government.

One official on the touchline sang, only serving to highlight his isolation, but there was heavy booing of the anthem by the large Iranian crowd inside the stadium.

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‘We are all Mahsa’: Iranians in Doha for World Cup voice anger at regime

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Signs of uprising were everywhere outside the stadium hosting England v Iran

Hundreds of Iranian fans arrived at Doha’s Khalifah stadium on Monday with a secret: they wanted their national team to lose.

“In my heart, I don’t want them to win,” said Mokhtar, 59, wincing visibly at the admission. The propaganda value of defeating Iran’s former colonial master, England, would simply be too irresistible for the country’s embattled rulers, he said.

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LGBTQ+ groups condemn Fifa over OneLove armband sanctions threat

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Campaigners hit out after teams including England and Wales say players will not wear armband at World Cup in Qatar

LGBTQ+ rights activists and campaigners have condemned Fifa’s threats to impose sanctions on players who wear OneLove armbands at the World Cup in Qatar.

England, Wales and five other European nations have confirmed their players will not wear the armband, saying the football governing body had made it clear their captains could be booked or forced to leave the pitch if they did so.

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‘World is watching’ Qatar, warns Peter Tatchell at London embassy protest

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LGBTQ+ activists call on fans to boycott games or use social media to highlight human rights abuses

Peter Tatchell has warned Qatar that the world’s eyes will be on the country during the World Cup, as protesters gathered outside its embassy in London to highlight the dangers faced by LGBTQ+ people, women and migrant workers.

Tatchell said t was “outrageous” that figures including David Beckham were promoting Qatar and the tournament, in effect asking fans to ignore human rights abuses and the country’s record on LGBTQ+ issues.

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Robbie Williams defends decision to perform in Qatar during World Cup

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Singer said he didn’t ‘condone any abuses of human rights’ but it would be ‘hypocritical’ not to go

Robbie Williams has defended his decision to perform in Qatar during the World Cup, arguing that it would be “hypocritical” not to go.

The singer, 48, has been criticised on social media for agreeing to sing during the tournament, which begins on Sunday night, due to the country’s human rights record, stance on homosexuality and treatment of migrant workers.

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Hopes for workers’ legacy fade after ‘deafening silence’ from Qataris

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  • Trade union working with Qatar fears for World Cup legacy
  • It sees ‘no sign that sustainable change is coming’

The trade union leading attempts to improve conditions for migrant workers in Qatar has warned that a positive World Cup legacy is unlikely after proposals for a migrant workers’ centre and wider reform were met with “deafening silence” by government officials.

The Building and Wood Workers’ International has been working with the Qatari government since 2016 and was part of a collective effort that led two years to the abolition of the kafala system, under which workers could not change jobs without their employer’s permission. Union officials, however, now believe that attempts to cement change – including the creation of a migrant workers’ centre – have been stonewalled and see “no sign that sustainable change is coming”.

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Qatar facing renewed calls to compensate migrant workers over uninvestigated deaths

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Bereaved families of workers and rights groups want World Cup organisers to make £372m payout

Qatar is facing renewed calls from migrant workers, their families, and rights groups to compensate for human rights abuses including wage theft, injuries and uninvestigated deaths, days before the World Cup kicks off.

As fans and footballers descend on the Persian Gulf country for the month-long tournament, workers and their families, who have spent 12 years sounding the alarm on exploitative conditions endured while building the tournament’s infrastructure, are seeking an amount equivalent to the $440m (£372m) World Cup prize money for a remediation programme.

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