On Eve of World Cup, FIFA Chief Says, ‘Don’t Criticize Qatar; Criticize Me.’

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Gianni Infantino defended the host country’s decision to ban the sale of beer at stadiums and fired back at the “hypocrisy” of Western criticisms.

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As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Anyone can read what you share.

By Tariq Panja

DOHA, Qatar — The president of world soccer’s governing body on Saturday sought to blunt mounting concerns about the World Cup in Qatar with a strident defense of both the host country’s reputation and FIFA’s authority over its showpiece championship.

But in pushing back against criticism of the event, particularly from Europe, the president, Gianni Infantino, seemed to revel in redirecting much of that anger toward himself.

In an extraordinary hourlong soliloquy delivered in a grand auditorium one day before the opening game of the World Cup, Infantino attacked Western critics of Qatar, Western companies who do business in the country and human rights groups and news media organizations who have highlighted the cause of migrant workers.

All of them, he said, had engaged in what he labeled “moral lesson-giving” and “hypocrisy.” Citing statistics, history and even childhood to bolster his case, he at one point likened his own experience as a redheaded child of immigrants to Switzerland to the assimilation problems of gays in the Middle East, and defended the laws, customs and honor of the host country.

“You want to criticize someone, come to me,” Infantino said. “Criticize me. Here I am. Crucify me,” he added, performatively rising in his seat and extending his arms out wide.

“Don’t criticize Qatar,” he continued. “Don’t criticize the players. Don’t criticize anyone. Criticize FIFA. Criticize me, if you want. Because I’m responsible for everything.”

In meandering remarks tinged by scorn and false equivalencies, Infantino also sought to reassure gay fans and others that they would be welcome and safe in the tiny Gulf state; pushed back against growing evidence that Qatar, and not FIFA, was in control of major decisions related to the tournament; and defended the last-minute decision by local organizers on Friday to ban the sale of beer at the tournament’s eight stadiums.

“I think personally, if for three hours a day you cannot drink a beer, you will survive,” Infantino said dismissively. There were still dozens of other locations around the country, he pointed out, where as many as 100,000 people could be served alcohol at any one moment.

But he also spent a significant portion of his address defending Qatar’s treatment of migrant laborers, the workers hired from some of the poorest corners of the planet to rebuild the desert state in a decade-long buildup to the first Arab World Cup. Thousands of workers have died in that period, according to human rights groups, after working long hours in intense heat and other harsh conditions. Qatar has repeatedly disputed those death tolls, and has defended itself by noting it has changed laws and instituted reforms to improve workers’ lives.

A Brief Guide to the 2022 World Cup

What is the World Cup? The quadrennial event pits the best national soccer teams against each other for the title of world champion. Here’s a primer to the 2022 men’s tournament :

Where is it being held? This year’s host is Qatar , which in 2010 beat the United States and Japan to win the right to hold the tournament. Whether that was an honest competition remains in dispute .

When is it? The tournament will open on Nov. 20, when Qatar plays Ecuador. Over the two weeks that follow, four games will be played on most days. The tournament ends with the final on Dec. 18. Here’s the full match schedule .

How many teams are competing? Thirty-two. Qatar qualified automatically as the host, and after years of matches, the other 31 teams earned the right to come and play. Meet the teams here .

How does the tournament work? The 32 teams are divided into eight groups of four. In the opening stage, each team plays all the other teams in its group once. The top two finishers in each group advance to the round of 16. After that, the World Cup is a straight knockout tournament.

How can I watch the World Cup in the U.S.? The tournament will be broadcast  on Fox and FS1 in English, and on Telemundo in Spanish. You can livestream it on Peacock, or on streaming services that carry Fox and FS1.

When will the games take place? Qatar is five hours ahead of London, eight hours ahead of New York and 11 hours ahead of Los Angeles. That means there will be predawn kickoffs on the East Coast of the United States for some games, and midafternoon starts for 10 p.m. games in Qatar.

Got more questions? We’ve got more answers here .

Given that, Infantino branded criticism of Qatar’s treatment of immigrants as “hypocrisy” and “moral lesson-giving” from a part of the world that should remember its own history.

“I think for what we Europeans have been doing around the world for the last 3,000 years, we should be apologizing for the next 3,000 years, before starting to give moral lessons,” Infantino said.

His performance may have been helpful to his Qatari hosts, though, in that it shifted the World Cup’s conversation away from them.

Infantino had come prepared, surprising the hundreds of journalists who had gathered expecting a 45-minute news conference filled with familiar talking points. Instead, reading from notes on the table, Infantino began his monologue with a tone and language that set up what was to follow.

“Today I have very strong feelings, I can tell you that,” he said. “Today I feel Qatari. I feel Arab. I feel African. I feel gay. I feel disabled. I feel a migrant worker.”

He then tackled one issue after another, expressing his irritation at how, in his mind, the reality of life in Qatar was far different from what was in the pages of newspapers, which he made a point of saying he ignored.

He insisted fears over the treatment of LGBTQ+ people attending the World Cup were overstated, and repeatedly said they were welcome in Qatar even though homosexuality remains criminalized in the country.

“Everyone’s security is guaranteed, from the highest level of government,” Infantino said. “This is the guarantee we’ve given, and we stick with it.” He then sought to play down Friday’s abrupt U-turn on the availability of beer at stadiums, a last-minute change that shocked the longtime FIFA partner most affected by it, Budweiser. Far from souring that relationship, Infantino insisted, the sudden rupture had in fact strengthened the relationship with the brewer.

He offered no evidence to support his claim, one day after Budweiser had released a statement that seemed to grudgingly accept a decision — made in consultation between Qatar and FIFA, Infantino insisted — that was out of their control.

That sudden reversal of years of promises by tournament organizers had raised questions about FIFA’s authority of its own event, with the beer ban being demanded by the most senior Qatari royals. Infantino, however, insisted that all decisions, even those made late, and apparently influenced by royal fiat, were made jointly.

“I feel 200 percent in control of this World Cup,” he said.

Infantino hinted darkly about what underpinned the sudden change of heart on beer, blaming the move on “threats that were not known before.” His comments also underlined concerns about Qatar’s suitability to host such a large event: With four games per day in the opening group stage, all played in what is effectively a single city-state, Infantino said the movement of large groups of fans within such a compact environment carried greater risks if they were fueled by beer.

Asked about the appropriateness of his language. Infantino remained unapologetic, doubling down whenever he was pressed to explain himself.

The remarkable 90-minute curtain-raiser ended with the unexpected intervention of Bryan Swanson, FIFA’s director of communications, who in defending Infantino’s inclusion efforts revealed that he was gay.

Having spent an hour and a half in the role of lightning rod for his hosts, Infantino let that be the last word. Besides, he had already hit all the points he wanted to make, offering all the defenses that he said they did not need.

“I don’t have to defend Qatar,” he said. “They can defend themselves.”

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World Cup 2022. What to Know. How Qatar Changed Soccer. Meet the Teams. Books to Read. Advertisement. Supported by. Gianni Infantino defended the host country’s decision to ban the sale of beer at stadiums and fired back at the “hypocrisy” of Western criticisms. Send any friend a story As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Anyone can read what you share. Give this article Give this article Give this article. Send any friend a story. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Anyone can read what you share. By Tariq Panja. DOHA, Qatar — The president of world soccer’s governing body on Saturday sought to blunt mounting concerns about the World Cup in Qatar with a strident defense of both the host country’s reputation and FIFA’s authority over its showpiece championship. But in pushing back against criticism of the event, particularly from Europe, the president, Gianni Infantino, seemed to revel in redirecting much of that anger toward himself. In an extraordinary hourlong soliloquy delivered in a grand auditorium one day before the opening game of the World Cup, Infantino attacked Western critics of Qatar, Western companies who do business in the country and human rights groups and news media organizations who have highlighted the cause of migrant workers. All of them, he said, had engaged in what he labeled “moral lesson-giving” and “hypocrisy.” Citing statistics, history and even childhood to bolster his case, he at one point likened his own experience as a redheaded child of immigrants to Switzerland to the assimilation problems of gays in the Middle East, and defended the laws, customs and honor of the host country. “You want to criticize someone, come to me,” Infantino said. “Criticize me. Here I am. Crucify me,” he added, performatively rising in his seat and extending his arms out wide. “Don’t criticize Qatar,” he continued. “Don’t criticize the players. Don’t criticize anyone. Criticize FIFA. Criticize me, if you want. Because I’m responsible for everything.” In meandering remarks tinged by scorn and false equivalencies, Infantino also sought to reassure gay fans and others that they would be welcome and safe in the tiny Gulf state; pushed back against growing evidence that Qatar, and not FIFA, was in control of major decisions related to the tournament; and defended the last-minute decision by local organizers on Friday to ban the sale of beer at the tournament’s eight stadiums. “I think personally, if for three hours a day you cannot drink a beer, you will survive,” Infantino said dismissively. There were still dozens of other locations around the country, he pointed out, where as many as 100,000 people could be served alcohol at any one moment. But he also spent a significant portion of his address defending Qatar’s treatment of migrant laborers, the workers hired from some of the poorest corners of the planet to rebuild the desert state in a decade-long buildup to the first Arab World Cup. Thousands of workers have died in that period, according to human rights groups, after working long hours in intense heat and other harsh conditions. Qatar has repeatedly disputed those death tolls, and has defended itself by noting it has changed laws and instituted reforms to improve workers’ lives. A Brief Guide to the 2022 World Cup. What is the World Cup? The quadrennial event pits the best national soccer teams against each other for the title of world champion. Here’s a primer to the 2022 men’s tournament : Where is it being held? This year’s host is Qatar , which in 2010 beat the United States and Japan to win the right to hold the tournament. Whether that was an honest competition remains in dispute . When is it? The tournament will open on Nov. 20, when Qatar plays Ecuador. Over the two weeks that follow, four games will be played on most days. The tournament ends with the final on Dec. 18. Here’s the full match schedule . How many teams are competing? Thirty-two. Qatar qualified automatically as the host, and after years of matches, the other 31 teams earned the right to come and play. Meet the teams here . How does the tournament work? The 32 teams are divided into eight groups of four. In the opening stage, each team plays all the other teams in its group once. The top two finishers in each group advance to the round of 16. After that, the World Cup is a straight knockout tournament. How can I watch the World Cup in the U.S.? The tournament will be broadcast  on Fox and FS1 in English, and on Telemundo in Spanish. You can livestream it on Peacock, or on streaming services that carry Fox and FS1. When will the games take place? Qatar is five hours ahead of London, eight hours ahead of New York and 11 hours ahead of Los Angeles. That means there will be predawn kickoffs on the East Coast of the United States for some games, and midafternoon starts for 10 p.m. games in Qatar. Got more questions? We’ve got more answers here . Given that, Infantino branded criticism of Qatar’s treatment of immigrants as “hypocrisy” and “moral lesson-giving” from a part of the world that should remember its own history. “I think for what we Europeans have been doing around the world for the last 3,000 years, we should be apologizing for the next 3,000 years, before starting to give moral lessons,” Infantino said. His performance may have been helpful to his Qatari hosts, though, in that it shifted the World Cup’s conversation away from them. Infantino had come prepared, surprising the hundreds of journalists who had gathered expecting a 45-minute news conference filled with familiar talking points. Instead, reading from notes on the table, Infantino began his monologue with a tone and language that set up what was to follow. “Today I have very strong feelings, I can tell you that,” he said. “Today I feel Qatari. I feel Arab. I feel African. I feel gay. I feel disabled. I feel a migrant worker.” He then tackled one issue after another, expressing his irritation at how, in his mind, the reality of life in Qatar was far different from what was in the pages of newspapers, which he made a point of saying he ignored. He insisted fears over the treatment of LGBTQ+ people attending the World Cup were overstated, and repeatedly said they were welcome in Qatar even though homosexuality remains criminalized in the country. “Everyone’s security is guaranteed, from the highest level of government,” Infantino said. “This is the guarantee we’ve given, and we stick with it.” He then sought to play down Friday’s abrupt U-turn on the availability of beer at stadiums, a last-minute change that shocked the longtime FIFA partner most affected by it, Budweiser. Far from souring that relationship, Infantino insisted, the sudden rupture had in fact strengthened the relationship with the brewer. He offered no evidence to support his claim, one day after Budweiser had released a statement that seemed to grudgingly accept a decision — made in consultation between Qatar and FIFA, Infantino insisted — that was out of their control. That sudden reversal of years of promises by tournament organizers had raised questions about FIFA’s authority of its own event, with the beer ban being demanded by the most senior Qatari royals. Infantino, however, insisted that all decisions, even those made late, and apparently influenced by royal fiat, were made jointly. “I feel 200 percent in control of this World Cup,” he said. Infantino hinted darkly about what underpinned the sudden change of heart on beer, blaming the move on “threats that were not known before.” His comments also underlined concerns about Qatar’s suitability to host such a large event: With four games per day in the opening group stage, all played in what is effectively a single city-state, Infantino said the movement of large groups of fans within such a compact environment carried greater risks if they were fueled by beer. Asked about the appropriateness of his language. Infantino remained unapologetic, doubling down whenever he was pressed to explain himself. The remarkable 90-minute curtain-raiser ended with the unexpected intervention of Bryan Swanson, FIFA’s director of communications, who in defending Infantino’s inclusion efforts revealed that he was gay. Having spent an hour and a half in the role of lightning rod for his hosts, Infantino let that be the last word. Besides, he had already hit all the points he wanted to make, offering all the defenses that he said they did not need. “I don’t have to defend Qatar,” he said. “They can defend themselves.” Advertisement.