According to Dana El Kurd, assistant professor of political science at the University of Richmond in Virginia, critics of the tournament are sometimes guilty of “double standards”.
“The discussion around Qatar’s World Cup — while sometimes bringing up absolutely correct and valid critiques – has also been motivated by hypocrisy and double standards in many cases,” she told AFP.
“I think it would be an omission if we didn’t recognise that racism plays a large part,” El Kurd said.
“They just see a country of Arabs in thobes (robes) and assume some extremist religious autocracy, when in reality people behave quite freely in Doha in terms of their personal choices.”
“RIDICULOUS AND INSULTING”
This view gained currency in Germany’s case when former international Sandro Wagner described the thobe as “Qatari bathrobes” while commentating on a match, sparking a social media storm. He later apologised.
On Tuesday, when energy-rich Qatar announced its first major deal to send liquefied natural gas to Germany, many on social media were quick to react.
“Your regular reminder that human rights concerns rarely get in the way of strategic interests,” read one post on Twitter.
During the tournament, some fans have worn rainbow clothing and government officials from Germany, Belgium and Britain have been seen with “OneLove” armbands in stadiums.
But various parts of the world have shown little enthusiasm for a human rights debate centred on a football tournament.
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