The World Cup in Qatar has already caused a stir, but the debate surrounding the event is clearly not over.
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, said a few days ago “We must not politicise sport”, regarding the World Cup in Qatar. This sentence was uttered after he announced that he would go to Qatar for the semi-final or the final if the French team was present.
Some object that the French President has already politicised sport in the past, notably by decorating athletes. “This Legion of Honour obliges you”, he assured the French football team, the 2018 world champions, in March 2019. “It obliges you for the Nation, and for the youth of France who will need your commitment.”
Controversy
But if the question of the President’s visit has been raised, it is because the World Cup has already caused a lot of talk, well before it has begun. Between the ethical, social and ecological problems, it has given rise to numerous debates. The media are receiving questions from Internet users about whether they will broadcast information about the competition or follow the boycott that has been set up.
This is the case of the daily newspaper Le Monde, which replied: “Le Monde will cover the World Cup in Qatar, because we believe that our role as a general information media is not to hide information but to report it to our readers, who will make their own choice as to whether or not to read the articles on the sporting event. We will, of course, cover all aspects of the event, be they sporting, geopolitical, social or environmental. (…) The choice of Qatar to host this event, as well as the conditions of this choice, can be legitimately questioned, and Le Monde has not hesitated to do so,” explains Gilles Van Kote, Director of Reader Relations.
In addition, many stars who do not want to be linked to this World Cup have refused to represent themselves. This is the case of artists Rod Stewart, Shakira and Dua Lipa. British singer Rod Stewart has explained that, despite tempting financial offers from the organisers, he does not want to offer his voice to the World Cup this year. He told The Times that “it didn’t feel right”, detailing that the discussions were “fifteen months ago”, but that from the start he knew it “wasn’t the right thing to do”.
The same can be said of singer Dua Lipa, who explained on her Instagram account that she could not in good conscience support an event held in a country such as Qatar. “I look forward to visiting Qatar when they have fulfilled all the promises they made on human rights when they won the right to host the World Cup”.
Read also > QATAR: IS THE WORLD CUP NEGLECTING HUMAN RIGHTS?
Featured photo : © Getty images
