With the previous paragraph:
Infantino has previously collaborated with Saudi Arabia when proposing a revamped Club World Cup, and many suspected this was linked to his suggestion that the country could be part of the solution for an expanded 2022 tournament.
But given the condemnation that followed the
murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the country's consulate in Istanbul last year, along with its role in Yemen's bloody civil war, such a step would have sparked a major backlash from human rights campaigners, as it would have done if the UAE had been awarded games.