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The World Cup is over and with over a week ahead of club football returning, I think this might be the right time to discuss the other aspects of the World Cup that weren't as exciting. We have a lot to cover, some things did happen in Qatar but are indications of much deeper problems that extend beyond sports, so let's get into it without wasting more time.

P.S: This topic will stray from the sport.

The "OneLove" Arm Band

Going into this tournament, Qatar's anti-LGBTQ stance was known and criticized since the announcement of them as hosts really. While Qatar doesn't actually have a law against homosexuals, but rather one that is simply against public display of affection, it's still safe to say that the country, much like most if not all countries in the region, isn't the most welcoming place for the LGBTQ+ community.

There are multiple layers to this issue, the first one is obvious, if you were gay you wouldn't be welcomed in the media. That makes the second one clear, there's very little freedom of expression in the country. The latter extends all the way to criticism of the country, right of assembly, and treatment of migrants, especially those that aren't from the west. Those are just a few problems the country has.

There's no escaping that, the law against public display of affection is merely a protective umbrella, yes, you can still be gay and live there, but it's obvious that you will be treated poorly due to that, whether by the state, its subsequent media, namely Al Jazeera (Arabic), or even by many of the people there. It's mainly cultural and political as Qatar is after all a Muslim Brotherhood-friendly country.

Another layer is that of the west acting like saviours. It's simply not their place, LGBTQ+ treatment grew organically in the west, and it took a long time to do so in a place where freedom of expression is higher than it is in this part of the world, a longer time than Qatar's entire existence as an independent country. You can fast-track that just because you finally reached the conclusion regarding sexuality.

Social changes, whether in the U.S., the U.K., Germany, the Netherlands, and wherever else came from within. As a man who is a friend of LGBTQ+ activists in the region I could tell you that, in their own words, every time the west attempts a gesture like that it sets whatever progress they have back as it shows sexual identity as something that merely existed thanks to western propaganda.

The other issue with the "OneLove" armband is that it is clearly done to score points for these players and football associations back home, it has little to nothing to do with Qatar itself. These same people have no problem vacationing in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, or the many other places where gay people are persecuted.

It's just hypocrisy, sports commentator Alex Scott enjoyed Qatari hospitality in a private box just weeks after her rainbow protest. It's a whole nothing sandwich as we saw how they all backed down at the prospect of a yellow card.

It's nothing new from the west, they have always taken that mantra of "saving the world". An example that comes to mind is Rudyard Kipling's poem The White Man's Burden which states that it's their duty to bring civility and "save their captive's needs". That poem goes all the way back to 1899. Much like Iraq's "liberation" by the U.S. the west's actions bring more hard than good as the LGBTQ+ communities across the region suffered great mockery throughout this period. It's our region, our culture, and we know how to navigate it better.

The Death of Grant Wahl

American journalist, Grant Wahl, died in Qatar. He previously made headlines by wearing a pro-LGTBQ+ shirt and attempting to go into a stadium. He was denied entry and detained for around half an hour. Following his death, many attributed to Qatar killing him and it was a whole splash of speculations, yet people were very certain it was the Qatari government that killed him.

It was a sad situation, but people decided to walk on Wahl's grave to fit their propaganda. Perhaps this is best contrasted by how anti-covid vaccines groups also blame the vaccine for it

Both sides continued throwing their accusations so vigorously and quickly that by the time the actual reason for his death came out a few days later no one cared and both moved on. Khalid al-Misslamwas a photojournalist who also died, but he didn't fit any narrative, so who cares, right?

Here's an example of that

https://twitter.com/emilykschrader/status/1601471127708004352

Yet Emily Schrader didn't bother talking about the autopsy and the actual cause of death later on.

The Palestinian Flag

Now, this is something that Qatar was completely hypocritical about. The main argument, which I agreed with when it comes to the "OneLove" armband is that you shouldn't mix politics with sports. Besides the usual suspects, everyone agreed with and backed Qatar with that. But then politics got mixed with sports.

Whether you are on Israel's side, Palestine's side, on the fence, or straight don't give a fuck about the conflict, there's no denying that there was a strong political presence for Palestine during this World Cup, magnified by Morocco making it to the semi-final of the tournament. Qatar's official channels broadcasting the World Cup, namely Al-Kas and BeIn Sports, expressed their support of Palestine through different means.

The issue is based on the principle that you can't deny one action based on the separation of politics and sports then go ahead and mix the two. Qatar hosted the World Cup and has the right to express its local culture in the process, that's the benefit that comes with hosting the World Cup which makes all the countries fight for it, however, using that to broadcast political agenda that even endangered Israeli journalists in the country, can be seen as sinister.

In conclusion

Qatar's World Cup didn't go without controversy, just like many other World Cups, but it definitely had more controversies than the rest. That includes beer banning, censoring, and of course the migrants' deaths which will be covered tomorrow.