Opinion | Thursday, 18th November 2021
The Qatar 2022 World Cup: one year to kick-off
Dr Paul Brannagan delves into the socio-political motives of the host country
By Dr Paul Michael Brannagan, Senior Lecturer in Sport Management and Policy, Manchester Metropolitan University Institute of Sport and author of the forthcoming book ‘Qatar and the 2022 FIFA World Cup: politics, controversy, change’
It is almost exactly one year until the 2022 FIFA World Cup kicks off in Qatar and, for many reasons, this one will be unique. The 2022 World Cup will be the first time an event of this size will take place in the Middle East and North African region, and with a population of under three million, and a total landmass of just 4,473 square miles, it will be the first time a mega sport event will be staged by such a small country.
Politically, this World Cup has been labelled as the one of the most controversial sports event ever, with Qatar’s image having been severely damaged since its acquisition of the rights to the tournament in 2010. Accusations have been swirling around notions of corruption, bribery and the state’s human rights record, raising questions over its suitability as a World Cup destination.
Why does Qatar want to host the World Cup?
There are many underlying motives behind Qatar’s desire to stage a World Cup. According to the International Monetary Fund, Qatar is the fourth richest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita, so it is unlikely to be using the World Cup to turn a quick profit. It seems the state may be looking to convert its abundance of wealth – accrued predominantly through the sale of natural oil and gas – into achieving various long-term aims.
One such aim is to overcome fears of invisibility and to differentiate itself from culturally similar neighbouring countries.
Qatar has long feared being seen as simply an extension of its much larger neighbour, Saudi Arabia, so the World Cup will help to educate global onlookers about its sovereign independence, as well as what it has to offer international audiences in terms of tourism, culture, trade, investment or science and technology.
Long-term, the hope is that by raising awareness of the state’s non-oil sectors, Qatar will be able to successfully diversify its economy. The need to do so is arguably paramount.
At present, Qatar’s oil and gas sector contributes to 70% of the state’s total annual revenue - 85% of its export earnings, and 60% of its gross domestic product. By using the World Cup to showcase non-oil sectors, Qatar hopes to provide itself with a greater degree of economic security, and to find a protective solution to any potential global oil price slumps in the future.
How has Qatar’s international image been damaged by the 2022 World Cup?
Qatar’s international image has been tarnished by three negative responses from its international audiences:
1. The global scrutiny concerning accusations of bribery and corruption surrounding Qatar’s successful bid to secure the rights to the 2022 World Cup.
At the centre of these allegations has been the Qatari Mohammed bin Hammam, who at the time was president of the Asian Football Confederation and a member of FIFA's executive committee. It has been claimed he employed multiple slush funds to pay FIFA officials in order to influence the vote for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar’s favour.
2. Led mainly by various sporting officials from across the globe, is concerns over Qatar’s (un)suitability as a major sports event host. Many officials claim that Qatar acts as a ‘high-risk’ World Cup destination for visiting fans and athletes, in large-part due to the state’s summer climate, which, in the hottest months, can reach highs of over 40°C.
3. Arguably most damming, has been the criticism from various international, non-governmental organisations and global media networks about Qatar’s human development issues at home. Since being awarded the 2022 World Cup, the state has faced intense global scrutiny for its treatment of migrant workers, particularly in the construction sector, which some have claimed, acts as an example of ‘modern-day slavery’.
While fears over Qatar’s summer climate have largely been resolved with the movement of the World Cup to December 2022, accusations of corruption and reports on the state’s human rights abuses have continued to largely dominate discussions surrounding the tournament.
This has impacted many audiences’ views of Qatar. Indeed, Qatar’s human rights record will damage the state’s desire to position itself as a friendly, welcoming country, while accusations of bribery and corruption come to undermine its integrity by positioning the state as self-centred and deceitful.
What are the challenges facing Qatar in 2022?
Looking ahead to 2022, Qatar faces three vital challenges leading up to, and during, the World Cup:
1. How successful the state will be in organising and delivering the tournament.
Qatar needs to ensure it completes its extravagant range of infrastructure projects prior to the world’s eyes fixating on the state in November 2022. These include eight World Cup stadiums - seven newly built and one fully refurbished; Lusail - a 38 square kilometre city that that has been built from scratch; and the Doha Metro, which will be the primary mode of transportation during the 2022 World Cup, directly connecting five of the eight World Cup stadiums to Qatar’s central airport hub. For Qatari event organisers, sticking to their intended infrastructure completion timelines and ensuring they get the logistical side of hosting the 2022 World Cup right, will go some way towards limiting any further negative scrutiny from the international community.
2. How successful Qatar is on educating global audiences on the positive changes it has made at home in regard to human rights.
In 2020 - and later in 2021 - Qatar introduced a set of key laws that marked, according to some, “a new era" for the Qatari labour market. Crucial here, was the introduction of a compulsory minimum wage for foreign workers, the requirement of an exit permit for expatriate workers to leave the country abolished, and workers are no longer required to seek permission to change jobs. In May 2021, the Qatari government also set out new rules that immediately became effective to better protect workers from heat stress.
As the world’s eyes fixate on Qatar in the coming 12 months, the country will need to ensure that such positive changes to workers’ welfare are promoted if it is to avoid further international critique in this regard.
3. How they can use the World Cup to change the behaviours of Qataris themselves, particularly with regard to addressing issues with lifestyle diseases.
The World Health Organization (2017) estimates that almost 19% of Qataris have diabetes, more than 71% are overweight, and 35% are obese. Such prevalence can be put down to high levels of wealth and affluence among Qataris, the rapid increase across Doha of western-style, high-calorie fast food outlets, and a general lack of physical activity across the population. It is estimated that more than 41% of all Qatari adults and 90% of adolescents are physically inactive.
Consequently, like organisers of most major sports events, the hope is that the state’s staging of the World Cup will encourage its community to take sport more seriously, and, in turn, to increase their participation in exercise and physical activity.
