No ‘Beautiful Game’ Without Rights in Qatar

On March 31, as FIFA convened its 72nd Congress in Doha, one speaker took a brave stance on the uncomfortable truth about human rights in Qatar. Lise Klaveness, the Norwegian Football Association president, directly called out FIFA’s failure to protect human rights when selecting Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup. Referencing “the beautiful game,” she noted, “Human rights, equality, democracy, the core interests of football, were not in the starting 11 until many years later. These basic rights were pressured on as substitutes, mainly by outside voices.” Specifically, Klaveness urged FIFA to ensure…

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