A tournament of surprises: Qatar world cup 2022
This year's World Cup has been an amazing event that has shocked us all. Smaller countries have competed stupendously and have fought hard against the bigger and more experienced opponents. Japan has performed incredibly well and it has shocked many fans how they pulled off some unbelievable results against top teams like Spain and Germany who they beat to finish top of their group.
Qatar was a very controversial place to host a World Cup as the laws involving human rights, particularly those of women and the LGBT+ community are incredibly poor. In Qatar, homosexuality is illegal and could result in up to 7 years of imprisonment. I believe that by having the World Cup, one of the world’s biggest sporting events, hosted in Qatar, FIFA is condoning and promoting these harmful attitudes. This undoes all of the work that players like Harry Kane have done to promote equality and diversity within football. Moreover, the fact that same sex couples are fined for wearing a rainbow heart on their sleeves is outrageous and we should fight against it as a global community.
Along with this, Qatar has invested over $220 Billion into their World Cup which is more than 14x more than the Russia World Cup in 2018. The construction of these stadiums has led to 400-500 deaths of migrant workers and it has been completely overlooked. Working conditions for the working classes in Qatar are frequently poor and there is an incredibly large class divide.
Controversy and corruption aside, this year’s tournament has been a very exciting one and it has been an incredible watch for us at home, supporting our countries from afar. Brazil have been amazing to watch with players such as Neymar, Martinell and Richarlisom really bringing back the Brazilian flair that we saw at the 2002 World Cup with R9 Ronaldo and Ronaldinho pairing up to be one of the best World Cup duos we have ever seen. Of course, the mighty England also put on an incredible show with Saka, Bellingham, Foden, Kane and Rashford all being key stars at the start of this World Cup. France, despite losing their Ballon d'Or winning striker Karin Benzema they have been immense to watch. Kylian Mbappé has astounded us all with his pace and flair on the pitch.
Now let's talk about the greatest player of all time, Lionel Messi who has carried his home nation of Argentina for the last 10-15 years on his back, his elegance and out of this world dribbling and control has amazed us all once again as he continues to grow in talent as a player. The Argentinian team went almost three years without losing a game as he took them to win the Copa America last season for his first ever international trophy. He may do the same again this World Cup as his astonishing ability has surpassed the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappé in this tournament - he scores virtually every goal for his nation to secure them a victory leading them a step closer to claiming that valuable trophy.
As we continue to watch this beautiful tournament and enjoy the exciting matches to come, we should also keep in mind the political backdrop of the tournament and consider some of Qatar’s inhuman and unjust laws.
Max
Qatar was a very controversial place to host a World Cup as the laws involving human rights, particularly those of women and the LGBT+ community are incredibly poor. In Qatar, homosexuality is illegal and could result in up to 7 years of imprisonment. I believe that by having the World Cup, one of the world’s biggest sporting events, hosted in Qatar, FIFA is condoning and promoting these harmful attitudes. This undoes all of the work that players like Harry Kane have done to promote equality and diversity within football. Moreover, the fact that same sex couples are fined for wearing a rainbow heart on their sleeves is outrageous and we should fight against it as a global community.
Along with this, Qatar has invested over $220 Billion into their World Cup which is more than 14x more than the Russia World Cup in 2018. The construction of these stadiums has led to 400-500 deaths of migrant workers and it has been completely overlooked. Working conditions for the working classes in Qatar are frequently poor and there is an incredibly large class divide.
Controversy and corruption aside, this year’s tournament has been a very exciting one and it has been an incredible watch for us at home, supporting our countries from afar. Brazil have been amazing to watch with players such as Neymar, Martinell and Richarlisom really bringing back the Brazilian flair that we saw at the 2002 World Cup with R9 Ronaldo and Ronaldinho pairing up to be one of the best World Cup duos we have ever seen. Of course, the mighty England also put on an incredible show with Saka, Bellingham, Foden, Kane and Rashford all being key stars at the start of this World Cup. France, despite losing their Ballon d'Or winning striker Karin Benzema they have been immense to watch. Kylian Mbappé has astounded us all with his pace and flair on the pitch.
Now let's talk about the greatest player of all time, Lionel Messi who has carried his home nation of Argentina for the last 10-15 years on his back, his elegance and out of this world dribbling and control has amazed us all once again as he continues to grow in talent as a player. The Argentinian team went almost three years without losing a game as he took them to win the Copa America last season for his first ever international trophy. He may do the same again this World Cup as his astonishing ability has surpassed the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappé in this tournament - he scores virtually every goal for his nation to secure them a victory leading them a step closer to claiming that valuable trophy.
As we continue to watch this beautiful tournament and enjoy the exciting matches to come, we should also keep in mind the political backdrop of the tournament and consider some of Qatar’s inhuman and unjust laws.
Max
