World Cup

What amused me was shown early in that. Havelange replaced that crusty old dodder Sir Stanley Rous on the promise he would kick South Africa out of FIFA which Rous wouldn’t do. This brought him the votes of lack countries. Later in the same episode he was saying World Cups were about football and FIFA shouldn’t get involved in politics. A line trotted out by Infantino. Of course Havelange coming in saw the start of money changing hands, bungs and corruption which exist to this day.

 

Yeah. It’s incredible how easy it was to keep pocketing money. So obvious and yet carried on. Yet when the game was up they still carried on like no one was questioning them. Did make me smile at the Havelange u turn once he got the job. Tell em what they want then when you are in **** em. Should of stood for government.

 

Now Infantino has said he wouldn’t object to a World Cup in Iran or North Korea. A lot of us won’t be around by the time that happens if it ever does which is a same as I would love to see the chaos surrounding that.
In future they should restrict World Cups to countries which don’t have to construct stadiums to hold the competition.
What has been spent on this World Cup, £250 billion, could have been used to make everyone in Hull a millionaire.

 

Now that would of been a good idea..

 

As a matter of interest. Anyone planning to go to the US, Canada and Mex for WC 2026?

 

Too dangerous. According to Brady anyway.

 

Yea

 

No answers here, just observations.

I suspect most people's objections to the WC being in Qatar fall into one of two categories (or both).

1. Football reasons - Qatar is not a footballing nation, has no football pedigree and therefore what gives it the right to host what should be football's greatest tournament? A famous song writer once wrote "Money doesn't talk, it swears," and if you want an example of money swearing and getting it's own way, then a Qatari World Cup sticks out like a sore thumb. Although this isn't the first time this competition has been mired in financial controversy, is it? (Step forward and take a bow, Messers Blatter and Platini). Now it could be argued that major footballing nations should have objected to Qatar hosting this tournament long ago. However, in pure footballing terms only (and leaving politics aside for one moment) what real argument could they have put forward apart from what I said at the start of this paragraph?
2. Political reasons. If major European countries really objected to the WC being in Qatar, they should have raised objections 10 years ago when the country was awarded the tournament. If say, England, Germany, Spain, France and Italy (although they didn't qualify) had all said 10 years ago, we aren't prepared to send teams there, what would have happened? Firstly, the competition would have gone ahead anyway and would have been poorer for those nations not participating. Secondly, it would have split the football world asunder and would probably have been the end of the WC as we know it, with nations from different continents finding
"reasons" not to participate in tournaments not held on their own continent.
To further complicate the matter, if European teams should not be competing in Qatar, then should they have supported the WC when it was in the following countries; Russia - even without the last 10 months, they hardly have an impeccable human rights record; Argentina- when it was ruled by a military dictator; South Africa -with its checkered history, or maybe all is forgiven; Brazil or Mexico -where you have wonderful stadia next door to people living and dying in abject poverty; and should either England or Argentina have participated in the 1982 WC in the immediate aftermath of the Falklands war? Where do you draw the political line?

If we are judging future hosts of the WC in political terms, how many countries outside of Europe would we deem acceptable? USA, Canada, and Australia? None of them have a particularly strong football history, do they? This is a World event, not just a European one, and therefore will sometimes be held in places we find politically unpalatable. In the current tournament it seems that it is only the European nations who are wanting to make token protests against the Qatari regime. I haven't heard of any South American or African teams raising the same objections. Iran protested, but that was about the political situation in their own country. Now, of course, we would argue that we are enlightened Europeans and we have it right when it comes to human rights and freedoms. People from other continents may argue that Europe is just out of kilter with much of the rest of the world. Whether or not some of the token protests that are being made actually make any difference, I can see how the European teams are giving the Arab world an easy narrative here, one that goes something like; "Here come those Westerners again on another crusade..."
In an event like this one, you are going to find nations of different cultures, belief systems and lifestyles whether we like it or not. And is it right for us to try to impose our way of living (if that is what we are trying to do) on another country, any more than it is right for people from another country to come to the UK and try to impose their lifestyles on us?

Answers? As the same songwriter said - Blowin' in the wind

 

France wouldn’t have pulled out. They lobbied and voted for Qatar after Platini’s meeting with Sarkoszy and his request to help swing a £9 billion pound trade deal.
Apart from anything else the cost of a non footballing country staging a World Cup is obscene - £250 billion in this case.

 

I don’t disagree on everything you say, but just wanted to pick up on the end bit.

For me, the biggest issue to do with this World Cup is all about respect and tolerance. I don’t think Qatar (or any country) has to approve of LGBT people, for example, but they also shouldn’t go out of their way to make life impossible for them.

Why is it down to the rulers how consenting adults live their lives? As long as it doesn’t present society with a wider issue, their religion or culture shouldn’t come into it.

I say the same about any of our laws ingrained in religion.

So yes, In my view it is right to raise these concerns about countries around the world. I think anyone has a right to talk about freedoms of people around the world and I don’t think FIFA should have the power to shut that down.

I know some people might try and turn that round and say ‘well how would you like it if someone from another country turned round and said Britain shouldn’t allow LGBT rights’ but in my mind that’s not the same thing as that’s restricting someone’s ability to live the life they want.

As long as it’s not hurting you or society, you have nothing to fear.

 

Very much so, yes.

 

And yet knowing the Qatari stance on such issues, FIFA awarded them the WC anyway. And such decisions put sport and politics on a collision course. I'm not disagreeing with you either - just pointing out how complicated things can get - especially as many nations have different levels of tolerance for different issues

 

Homosexuality was illegal in this country when we won the World Cup in 1966. But we changed. Unfortunately countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia and others won’t as it isn’t just a matter of culture it is in the Koran and what it says there cannot be ignored or changed.

 

Well yes, but if I was FIFA I wouldn’t award a World Cup to any country who doesn’t have equality laws in place for any characteristic that they deem should be protected.

And because they do see LGBT issues as an identity to protect they shouldn’t be banning items that highlight issues concerning it.

 

We changed because protests are allowed to happen. The fact that people aren’t allowed to peacefully protest means no change will happen.

The religious law is exactly my point. No one way of life should ever be the only legal way of living. It

 

Players will be wearing FIFA No Discrimination arm bands though. Presumably No Discrimination unless you are LGBTQ+ or a woman.

 

FIFA don't discriminate against repressive regimes - Argentina 1978, Russia 2018, Qatar 2022

 

Wouldn't only having the lgetc arm band, be discrimination in that case?

 

We didn’t change because of protests. It was changed in 1967 due to it being discussed in our Parliament and democratically voted on. Another thing that couldn’t happen in Qatar, Saudi etc…