Stephen Kenny defends decision to travel to Qatar for World Cup
Stephen Kenny has defended his decision to travel to Qatar for the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
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England won't be silenced by FIFA plea to focus on football, says Southgate
England manager Gareth Southgate said his squad will not be discouraged from speaking out about human rights abuses at the World Cup in Qatar, despite a plea from FIFA to focus on football.
FIFA forbids Danish World Cup squad to train in pro-human rights shirts
FIFA have rejected a bid by Denmark's World Cup squad to wear pro-human rights shirts in training, the Danish football federation (DBU) said Thursday.
Qatar has thousands of World Cup rooms available: official
Qatar World Cup organisers said Wednesday that there are still thousands of rooms available for the tournament despite fears that the tiny Gulf state would be overflowing with fans when the tournament starts this month.
Newcastle fans group to protest as Saudi owners announce £70.4m cash boost
A Newcastle United football club supporter stands with a flag above the club logo at their stadium St James’ Park in Newcastle upon Tyne in northeast England on October 8, 2021. – A Saudi-led consortium completed its takeover of Premier League club Newcastle United on October 7 despite warnings from Amnesty International that the deal represented “sportswashing” of the Gulf kingdom’s human rights record. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP)
Sepp Blatter admits 'mistake' in awarding Qatar the World Cup
Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter has admitted it was "a mistake" to award the 2022 World Cup finals to Qatar.
LGBT activists protest at FIFA Museum ahead of World Cup in Qatar
ZURICH : A few dozen people protested in front of the FIFA Museum in Zurich on Tuesday to press for the rights of the LGBT+ community ahead of the World Cup hosted by Gulf state Qatar.
'They have to accept our rules here' - Qatar World Cup ambassador makes anti-gay comments
A Qatar World Cup ambassador has told German television broadcaster ZDF that homosexuality was "damage in the mind", as the Gulf state prepares to host the global tournament in less than two weeks. In an interview filmed in Doha and to be screened later on Tuesday, former Qatar international Khalid Salman addressed the issue of homosexuality, which is illegal in the conservative Muslim country. Some players have raised concerns over the rights of fans travelling to the event, especially LGBTQ+ individuals and women, whom rights groups say Qatari laws discriminate against. The country expects more than one million visitors for the World Cup. "They have to accept our rules here," Salman said, in an excerpt of the interview. "(Homosexuality) is haram. You know what haram (forbidden) means?" he said. When asked why it was haram, Salman said: "I am not a strict Muslim but why is it haram? Because it is damage in the mind." The interview was then immediately stopped by an accompanying official. Qatar's World Cup organisers, when contacted by Reuters, declined to comment. World football's ruling body FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for a comment. Organisers have repeatedly said everyone was welcome in Qatar during the World Cup. Qatar is the first Middle Eastern country to host the World Cup but the small nation has come under intense pressure in recent years for its treatment of foreign workers and restrictive social laws.