Unsurprisingly, the football World Cup in Qatar, which ended spectacularly, is a triumph for Hassan al-Thawadi. Not everything was perfect, but at least “incomparable”, even “phenomenal” for the fans.
Like FIFA President Gianni Infantino, chief organizer Hassan al-Thawadi has declared the World Cup in Qatar to be the best in history. “Yes, it’s the best in history. We learned from Russia, learned from South Africa, learned from Brazil and learned from Germany,” said al-Thawadi after Sunday’s thrilling final between Argentina and France (4-2 on penalties ).
The OC boss emphasized that the desert World Cup during Advent was not a copy of one of the previous final tournaments. Measured by the concept, it was a “unmistakable tournament” that “can never be compared with others”.
Before and during the final round in Qatar, not only the postponement to winter, but also the human rights situation in the emirate and the conditions for guest workers were grounds for criticism from abroad. “Despite the best of intentions, the situation was not acceptable,” said al-Thawadi on the English broadcaster “Sky”. “The World Cup accelerated or helped to accelerate many of these reforms.”
Al Thawadi said a workers’ relief fund would take care of all matters related to unfortunate deaths. This fund should also exist beyond the World Cup. “It’s a commitment that the Government and the Ministry have made and it goes beyond the World Cup.
Human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch, on the other hand, were extremely skeptical as to whether the World Cup would really improve the situation of migrant workers or members of the LGBTQIA community. According to Wenzel Michalski, Germany director of Human Rights Watch, the human rights situation in Qatar has not improved even remotely as a result of the World Cup. “FIFA and the Qatari government have not moved an inch. Everyone who said that the direction in the country would lead to something good and push reforms was wrong,” Michalski said in an interview with “Welt am Sonntag”: “A stubborn blockhead like FIFA has teamed up with another stubborn blockhead like Qatar, they don’t care about people’s rights at all.”
Unsurprisingly, al-Thawadi did not share the impression that the mood in Qatar was significantly less than at the previous World Cups. The tournament was also “phenomenal” from the fan perspective. As an example, he cited the euphoria surrounding the surprise team from Morocco, who were the first African team to reach a World Cup semi-final. “The whole Arab world gathered behind Morocco and celebrated with us.” According to al-Thawadi, the main goal has been achieved: “To create the opportunity for people from different parts of the world to come to us to get to know us – and then to judge us.” There are still differences, but you share “a common passion”.