When the soccer World Cup begins in just over a week, only a few pubs in Thuringia will be offering television broadcasts.
Erfurt (dpa/th) – The men’s soccer World Cup will start in Qatar next week. However, football fans in Thuringia may have to do without cheering on the national team in the pub around the corner for the most part. Only a few innkeepers are expected to show the games, but not so much to protest against the host Qatar, but for economic reasons, said the chairman of Dehoga Thuringia, Dirk Ellinger, the German Press Agency.
Since the games can usually only be shown indoors, it is unclear whether the costs for the expensive licenses can be paid for, Ellinger said. Some would also have to choose whether they would rather keep the guest room free for the football game – or for the Christmas party, which could be the nicer business. However, some innkeepers are still undecided. Should the team of national coach Hansi Flick go far, they could still show games, said Ellinger.
The World Cup kicks off next Sunday (November 20). The tournament in the emirate has long been criticized for human rights violations and the treatment of workers from other countries. There have also been a number of fatal accidents on construction sites in the past. The emirate’s government refers to its own reforms and rejects some of the criticism.
