British public broadcaster, BBChas chosen this Sunday to start its broadcast of the Qatar World Cup differently from other media. The chain began its transmission with a report that denounced the violation of human rights in the Arab country instead of broadcasting the ceremony that kicked off the soccer championship.
Just before the start of the first match, the public broadcaster opted for a special program that dealt with the context of the event in which the different teams will face each other to decide which is the best in the world.
Gary Linekerformer British soccer player and presenter of the Match of the Day program, stated at the beginning of this broadcast that “it is the most controversial World Cup in history and not even a ball has been kicked.”
Lineker explained that, “since FIFA chose Qatar in 2010,” the sporting event has been embroiled in accusations of corruption, labor exploitation of migrant workers that has resulted in 6,500 deaths due to working conditions in the construction of the stadiums and the violation of the rights of women and homosexual people. “There is a tournament that will be played, that will be seen and enjoyed throughout the world. Limit yourself to football, says FIFA. Well, we will, at least for a couple of minutes,” he concluded. Gary Lineker during the first broadcast of the Qatari World Cup.
The BBC contextualizes the World Cup
The program highlighted the situation of corruption that the organization of the sporting event has been experiencing since Qatar was chosen as the destination for the World Cup.
While the rest of the world was watching BTS’s performance, the British came across a report from the journalist ros atkins in which the situation in which this World Cup had developed was contextualized. This includes an interview with James Lynchdeputy director of the Global Affairs Program at International Amnesty.
If you’re a secondary school teacher, this video might be useful in class ahead of the England game if you’re looking to explain the broader controversies around the men’s World Cup in Qatar. pic.twitter.com/yX5LDa7Mal
— Ros Atkins (@BBCRosAtkins) November 21, 2022
FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, was criticized after his words last Saturday. “I have strong feelings, today I feel Qatari, today I feel Arab, today I feel African, today I feel gay, today I feel disabled, today I feel a migrant worker,” he announced while criticizing the “double standards” in Europe. While the FIFA is defending Qatar for economic benefitsthe World Cup is laundering the violation of the rights of the Qatari regime.
