Fifa breathes a sigh of relief with the end of the Qatar Cup cycle

In the immediate aftermath of the 2018 World Cup, a common joke among South American officials was that, if they could, FIFA would hold all of its tournaments in Russia.

Despite political problems and lack of freedom of expression, the country had held an impeccably organized World Cup; For a month, the country’s government turned a blind eye to the behavior of millions of tourists that did not conform to Russian customs.

The tournament hosted by Qatar ends this Sunday with the final between Argentina and France. The end of a 12-year cycle of controversies, questioning, date changes, denouncements and accusations against FIFA.

Partly because of the choice of the country in the Middle East, the organization experienced its most traumatic moment in history: Fifagate, in 2015, the American justice process that resulted in bans, convictions and arrests of leaders. Among them, the former president of the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation), José Maria Marin.

“I don’t have to defend Qatar. I’m defending football and [lutando contra] injustice. We see many representatives here coming to Qatar,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino in support of the first World Cup in an Islamic country.

As a defense of the competition, he used various hyperbole. He said the 2022 Cup had the “best group stage in history”, was the “best World Cup ever”, left “a transformative legacy”.

His predecessor, Sepp Blatter, had said giving the seat to Qatar was a mistake. He resigned as a result of allegations of corruption.

It was a strategy that Infantino had already used when, two days before the opening, the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, responsible for organizing the World Cup, followed the monarchy’s decision and prohibited the sale of beers in the World Cup stadiums. The permission was agreed in the contract. 48 hours before the first game, there was nothing FIFA could do.

Instead of criticizing the hosts, Infantino spoke of the prejudices of Europeans and started a speech that that day he “felt an Arab”.

The numbers presented by Qatar shortly before and during the World Cup seem to clash with what those who are in the country for the tournament see.

It was disclosed that 98% of the tickets were sold and that the capacity of the stadiums ended up being filled in practically all the games. But some group stage matches took place with at least half of the seats empty. Cameroon v Serbia and Australia v Denmark, for example, had large empty spaces in the stands. Even so, when the public was disclosed, the number corresponded to more than 90% of the maximum capacity.

The estimate was that 1.4 million people would travel to Qatar to follow the matches. But the World Cup atmosphere, except in a few tourist places or on subway lines that went to stadiums on match days, was non-existent.

Qatar surprisingly won the right to host the World Cup in an election held by FIFA in December 2010. Since then, the country and FIFA have lived with an almost constant controversy. Denounces regarding the lack of rights of the mass of immigrant workers, deaths in stadium construction, lack of freedom of expression and restrictions on the LGBTQIA+ community happened in a loop. When one ended, another began.

To escape the summer of Qatar and its temperatures in excess of 50ºC, Fifa changed the date of the World Cup for the first time in history. It took her from June to November.

“We can do other World Cups in the winter [europeu]”, said Infantino, considering, of course, that the experience in Qatar was a success.

It is a statement that gives hope to other rich countries in the region, such as Saudi Arabia, even more restrictive than Qatar in social issues, to host the tournament.

As of this second, Fifa breathes a sigh of relief because the next globalist cycle promises to bring less problems and negative publicity. The 2026 World Cup will be held jointly by the United States, Canada and Mexico.