Saudi Arabia 2034 FIFA World Cup: The prize is polarizing

Like no other – this is how you can do it Granting the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia Maybe the best description. After Australia’s withdrawal on Tuesday, the Sahrawi country obtained the right to organize the FIFA World Cup after 11 years, subject to the approval of the FIFA Congress. This raises a lot of debate – often relating to human rights.

For the head of Human Rights Watch in Germany, holding the World Cup in Saudi Arabia is absurd. Wenzel Michalski, director of Human Rights Watch in Germany, said in an interview with the German News Agency that he believes “absolutely nothing” about holding the World Cup there in 2034. For him, holding the World Cup in Saudi Arabia actually means… Betrayal of all those who believe that FIFA is actually capable of implementing its current human rights standards. There was already widespread criticism of FIFA during the World Cup in Qatar at the end of last year. Michalski said he did not want to compare the two countries. The human rights situation in Saudi Arabia is worse than in Qatar.

The award is not surprising

Despite all the criticism, the award is not surprising at all. Islamic affairs and political scientist Sebastian Sons from the German News Agency said: “After the investments that we are currently witnessing in football and sports in general, the FIFA World Cup is the logical culmination and in a certain way also a continuation of what Qatar has done.” .

The 42-year-old is, among other things, an expert on sports politics in the Arab Gulf region. Football has “extreme social importance” in Saudi Arabia. This provides opportunities for sporting and political exchange. The scientist said that one should say goodbye to the idea that political conditions will change as a result of the World Cup.

By the way: It is currently unclear whether the World Cup will be held in the summer or winter. However, given the high summer temperatures in Saudi Arabia, it is likely that a winter World Cup will become a reality again.

You can read how 20 Minutes community and social media users are finding the upcoming Desert World Cup in the photo gallery above.

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