The 2022 World Cup, the first to be held in the Middle East, has been awash in controversy from the start. The vote that awarded the tournament to Qatar was rife with allegations of corruption and cheating. Shortly after the bid was approved, human rights organizations voiced concerns over labor practices in Qatar that bound migrant workers to their employers, inviting mistreatment and abuse.
Yet in a little more than 8 weeks some 1.2 million soccer fans will begin pouring into Doha.
And they will watch games in stadiums built by migrant workers, eat in restaurants staffed by migrant workers and take Ubers and subway cars driven by migrant workers.
Qatari citizens have the highest per-capita income on the planet, with annual average earnings of $129,360, according to the FinancesOnLine Research Center. And though they pay no income tax, those citizens receive free education, health and child care and are charged nothing for water or electricity, among other perks.
Meanwhile migrant workers from Africa and southwest Asia who work in construction, domestic help or in security and the service industry receive a minimum wage at $275 a month, plus accommodation.
According to statistics there have been 6,750 deaths of South Asian migrants in the 12 years since Qatar was awarded the right to host the World Cup. Many of those deaths were traced to routinely working as many as 10 hours a day in summer temperatures of 113 degrees or more.
37 of deaths among workers directly linked to construction of World Cup stadiums.
The findings, compiled from government sources, mean an average of 12 migrant workers have died each week since the night in December 2010 when the streets of Doha were filled with ecstatic crowds celebrating Qatar’s victory.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is expected to leave positive legacies in the areas of sustainability, technological innovation and Qatar’s international standing. Regarding sustainability, Qatar aims to set new standards and benchmarks through the tournament.
Qatar is also bolstering its international standing and influence through sports. Beyond hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup,
Qatar’s commercial capacity and openness to international investment and business opportunities provide a platform to promote the country as a desirable destination for tourism and trade. Qatar hosted 500 international sports events between 2005 and early 2022, and 63 in 2021 alone. Recent events include the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup and the Turkish Super Cup final held on January 5, 2022.
The lasting legacy of the Qatar World Cup remains to be seen!
The world is watching…
