Ahead of the upcoming World Cup in Qatar, the football fans’ association is facing a highly controversial match. A representative caused a stir with a request to the Qatari ambassador.
Boycott the game on the site and also in front of the TV and often kick yourself during the tournament. Explore the political situation in Qatar – and specifically the protests against associations such as the DFB and FIFA. This is roughly how the organized fan scene handles the upcoming World Cup.
While Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz is on his way to the World Cup host country at the weekend, there is a day of fan action in Frankfurt under the slogan “Not our World Cup!” on.
The organizers of the panel discussion on Saturday at 6:00 pm are the network of “Never again!”, the fan association “Unsere Curve”, the Gesellschaftsspiele association from Berlin and the “Boycott Qatar” initiative.
“It’s about immoral sports”
Basically, the protests and opposition to the acceptance of this World Cup is about “people being disqualified and driving the masses to overwork – heat – death to make the World Cup possible. To women and the LGBTIQ* community, Mr. Dario Minden, spokesman for “Unsere KURK”, the German news agency said. “And that all this does not seem to matter to the football industry at its peak, as long as the money waving is big enough. It’s about an immoral sport that can still be put on a wheelchair.”
Before the World Cup from November 20 to December 18, Qatar was criticized. Criticize the violation of human rights and the treatment of workers from other countries. Fatal accidents have also occurred at construction sites in the past. The government of the emirate refers to its own reforms and rejects some criticism.
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Earlier in the week, the German Football Association (DFB) held a meeting on Qatar with experts. Mr. Abdulla Mohammed al Thani, Qatar’s ambassador to Germany, stressed that your country has been a focus for 12 years and has initiated many changes. The situation is “still not perfect”, change takes time: “It’s not 100 percent, it’s a journey.”
Minden addressed the ambassadors directly
A touching scene unfolded when Minden’s representative spoke directly to the ambassador and spoke in English calmly but firmly: “I am a man and I love men. I have sex with other men is normal. Ever been involved or out of the house. of football.” The appeal has caused an uproar online.
The alliance “ProFans” with its many supporters from the ultra scene does not even want to participate in “such whitewashing” as said at the meeting of the association. “The meeting certainly has the additional task of calming the mind of the DFB leadership and presenting the association to the public in accordance with its commitment to human rights,” it said in a statement.
In any case, the DFB and the Coordinating Office for Fan Projects (KOS) will use mobile fan support for Germany’s World Cup games in Qatar. World association FIFA meanwhile advertised this week for a redesigned fan festival in “the spectacular location of al-Bidda Park in Doha” with “a completely new entertainment offer”.
In August, DFB President Bernd Neuendorf spoke with representatives of the LGBTIQ* community, who gave advice on the trip to Qatar. The English acronym stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans people, intersex and queer people. Asterisks are additional markers of identity and gender.
The DFB wants to use influence to the extent of its possibilities
When asked by dpa, the “National Football Club” said about the issue of human rights in the World Cup, “paying careful attention to the conditions for company employees to work directly in Qatar”. Should “problems arise during the DFB’s own analysis and during the stay, the DFB will exercise influence to the extent of its possibilities and try to resolve the situation”. Fan Club, where the fan camp will be in Dubai, is based on this.
According to Minden, there is nothing to expect in Bundesliga stadiums from “our corner” more than posters or banners protesting the World Cup in Qatar: “Then it is not a problem like 50+1 or a stressful start time. The German association can have a noticeable effect.”
Innkeepers announced the abandonment of the World Cup
In North Rhine-Westphalia, an announcement by a restaurant that they would not broadcast the World Cup game (“No Qatar in my shop”) made headlines. “Everyone has the right not to watch the game,” said Helmut Spahn, Germany’s head of FIFA security, who lives and works in Qatar, in an interview with “Frankfurter Rundschau”. “But I also noticed that we had big ticket requests.”
When it comes to human rights, it is interesting “that organizations such as Amnesty International or the International Trade Union Confederation reject calls for non-conflict because they recognize progress in the country and also see the World Cup as a driving force here. Spahn said.
The “fake competition”, warned that the “Unsere Curve”, must not happen without protest and criticism from civil society. According to the spokesman Minden, many clubs are planning alternative activities parallel to the sporting highlights of the World Cup, such as debates about matches and countries or other topics of fans – politics or reading. Or they just play and watch football, as the “Back2Bolzen” initiative suggests: “It doesn’t matter if it’s a little kick with friends, football on the table or supporting the local club in the local league.”
© dpa-infocom, dpa:220920-99-837780/5