We are just days away from the opening of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. But where is the enthusiasm?
Despite the forced advertisements, mainly the one with the song by my late friend Gonzaguinha, “Vamos à Luta”, this time the Cup is stronger on the commercial side than on the passion of the Brazilian fans.
Comments that are not spontaneous denounce that it seems to be mandatory to say that the national team is the big favorite and it is forbidden to say that you don’t like the team. Those who criticize are called cold feet.
The vast majority of these players did not fight when the Brazilian people most needed football idols to say something. I’m not talking about a party or a politician, but about the difficulties that our society has been facing.
How to make a clip with the verse “I believe in the guys”, if these guys don’t believe in us?
The sports media give the idea that the population is united in one thought, rooting for the national team, as in that song from the 1970 World Cup: “All together, let’s go, Forward Brazil, Save the national team”.
Our moment is not one of everyone together, much less of saving the selection.
We also have the radicalization of those who lost the elections, who ask for military intervention. The yellow shirt, which we always wear during the World Cup, was usurped by scammers in the streets.
Brazil’s debut will be on the 24th, against Serbia, in less than a week, and it seems that nothing is happening. The sale of the yellow shirts has been a failure, so much so that the official sports brand and the CBF are trying to disconnect the shirt from the Bolsonaristas’ selection. But how, if the CBF itself promoted a shirt with the number 22? I have friends who own stores who have returned the yellow shirt. There are only blue and black ones.
This situation is not only due to the political moment, but also because the Cup is being held in a country that lives under a dictatorship, without respecting human rights, and because it is being held at the end of the year, which never happened.
FIFA did not respect football and World Cup fans, and gave in to Qatar’s petrodollars, a country with no tradition in football and which treats immigrant workers, mainly from India and Nepal, like slaves.
A place where women are treated as inferior beings and totally homophobic, as the Netflix documentary “Fifa Schemes” makes clear.
Ambassador of the Qatar Cup, former player Khalid Salman said in an interview that being homosexual is a haram, that is, a sin for Islam. “It’s mental damage.”
Around the world, fans and athletes are protesting rather than getting excited about the World Cup.
Some teams are already there, like the favorite Argentina, but part of the crowd has already shown its face, with racist and homophobic chants. It will be sad to see this repertoire being accepted, as sanctioned by the laws of the country.
FIFA is also playing this game, by banning the Danish national team from training with the message “Rights for All” on their shirts.
Even so, it is the main football tournament and the most anticipated in the world, as it takes place every four years. And I hope it stays that way, because there is a movement to hold the Worlds every two years, which for me would be a big mistake.
Another ball out will be the opening game, the least attractive of all the World Cups: Qatar v Ecuador. The opening should have some favorite team on the field. I would play the opening game again with the last champion. At least there would be no risk of having a weightless game.
Anyway, the World Cup is about to start, folks. And while the national team is playing, more than 30 million Brazilians are starving. “Forward, Brazil.”
As a seasoned news journalist, I bring a wealth of experience to the field. I’ve worked with world-renowned news organizations, honing my skills as a writer and reporter. Currently, I write for the sports section at News Bulletin 247, where I bring a unique perspective to every story.
