Project of the royal family of Qatar reaches its apex with Messi and Mbappé in the final of the World Cup

When the semifinal of the World Cup between France and Morocco ended, on Wednesday (14), what would be a dream final for Qatar was designed.

After guaranteed the presence of the Argentine Lionel Messi in the decision, it was the turn of the Frenchman Kylian Mbappé also to confirm his place.

It will be the clash between the seven-times best player in the world and who, at the age of 35, has his last chance to win the title he lacks, against one of the biggest candidates to inherit the throne of world football, already in search of his second World Cup, aged 23.

According to Forbes magazine, the duo is at the top of the list of the highest paid footballers in the world in 2022. Mbappe leads the ranking, with US$ 128 million (R$ 466 million), of which US$ 110 million (R$ $400 million) from football alone. Messi appears in second, with US$ 120 million (R$ 436 million), US$ 65 million (R$ 236 million) with the sport.

In common, both wear the shirt of Paris Saint-Germain, a club owned by QSI (Qatar Sports Investments), a subsidiary of the sovereign fund of the State of Qatar.

The fund is accused of investing billions in an unprecedented “sportswashing” project, which even involves choosing the Middle Eastern country, rich in oil and natural gas, as the host of this edition of the World Cup.

The complaints include all the meanings of the term in English, which indicates the use of sport as a way of “washing” the image of an autocratic State, in which respect for democracy and human rights is questionable, as is the case of Qatar.

The country has a long history of confronting the basic rights of women, migrant workers —thousands of whom were responsible for building the entire structure for the Cup—, as well as the LGBTQIA+ community.

In this context, the use of the World Cup as a geopolitical tool goes against what FIFA itself defended throughout the competition —to try to prevent the political use of the matches it promoted at all costs.

Held in a country where it is a crime to be homosexual, this edition will be marked, for example, by the veto of the protest in defense of the gay community that seven European teams intended to do through a message on the armband of their captains.

Athletes would wear the rainbow-colored headgear and the inscription One Love. After football’s highest governing body threatened to punish them on the pitch if they did, they were forced to wear the official FIFA armband. On it, it was written “no discrimination” (no discrimination).

In all competition games, fans were also prevented from entering the stadiums with t-shirts or flags with the colors of the rainbow. The rigor of the inspection was so strong that even a flag of the state of Pernambuco, with the same colors, was confused by the local authorities.

The presence of Messi and Mbappé in the decision, in addition to the weight of the confrontation between two teams that are looking for a third world championship, could be the return of Qatar’s investment in sport.

The front pages of newspapers, radio and TV reports, as well as online pages will be flooded next Sunday (18) with the story of success and failure on the field, whatever the side, giving less weight to complaints against the regime .

This week, for example, Sky Sports News published an interview with Nasser Al-Khelaifi, president of Qatar Sports Investments, president of Paris Saint-Germain, president of the European Club Association and one of the most powerful men in global sport, in which he talked about the Cup.

Al-Khelaifi said he does not support politicians who use sport to promote themselves and that anyone who tries to use competitions for other agendas “will not succeed”.

“What we are doing here in Qatar is just sport and football,” he said.

In the interview, Al-Khelaifi does not mention the scandal at the heart of a European Union institution, revealed last week.

According to an investigation by Belgian authorities, a group of people with functions and transit within the European Parliament would have received money and favors to defend Qatar’s interests, with the aim of improving its international position.

Dubbed Qatargate, the case landed four people in prison, including one of the vice-presidents of the House, Greek Eva Kaili, who was also removed from office.

In November, parliamentarians approved a resolution that regretted the lack of transparency in the process of choosing Qatar as host of the World Cup.

On the eve of the vote on that resolution, Eva defended the Middle Eastern country. “The Cup is proof of how sports diplomacy can achieve the historic transformation of a country with reforms that inspired the Arab world,” she said.

Through her lawyer, she denies having received bribes. The investigation is already on the extensive list of complaints involving the scenario that housed today’s main players, two of whom will face each other this Sunday.