The World Cup 2022 will be played from 21 November to 18 December a Qatar. The Arab country is an absolute monarchy ruled by the Al Thani family for decades. And, as is known, prohibitions abound in this area.

In the Muslim country, you cannot have sex outside of marriage. The free expression of affection between people of the same sex is also penalized. And from now on, anyone who wears an LGTBI flag during the contest celebration will be sent to prison.

“Anyone who wears the LGBTI flag at the World Cup will be arrested for 7 or 11 years. Qatar is an Islamic country and its religion must be respected”Said Nasser Al-Khater, president of the organizing committee of the Qatar World Cup.

It might seem strange in this part of the world. However, the organizing country of the World Cup has already expressed its position and was decisive: “Qatar is a conservative country and public displays of affection are frowned upon regardless of sexual orientation,” they announced some time ago.

While, Giani Infantinopresident of the FIFAhe had already expressed himself with some slightly contradictory phrases, stating that the LGBT community “will be very welcome in Qatar”, but adding that “they must respect the local culture (…) if Qatar did not welcome everyone, they would not have organized the event.

The boss of the world’s highest governing body said he is training “those responsible and working side by side with the entities and the police and we will welcome everyone”.

Infantino, on the other hand, claimed to be based in Doha, Qatar. This trip is to closely follow, together with the Arab authorities, the implementation of some reforms that have an impact on the human rights of migrant workers.

“I have pitched my tent here in Doha, I will live here and go every day to see government officials and ensure that these laws (reforms) are enforced and if violations are committed,” the FIFA president said at the closing panel of the Qatar Economic Forum.

Infantino encouraged “everyone to see the facts and the results” and defended some measures adopted by the Muslim country such as the elimination of the “kafala”, a system that prevents migrant workers from leaving the country; and the increase in the minimum wage.

“It took hundreds of years in Europe to get to where we are now in terms of social impact,” while “in this part of the world, and in particular Qatar, it happened in just a few years,” he added.

Meanwhile, Qatar is a country that has emerged as a power in Asia thanks to its natural gas reserves, the third largest in the world. It has a population of over two million people, but only 250,000 of them are citizens of Qatar.

Most of the migrants are from countries and Asia and represent 95% of the workforce. According to several NGOs, they face a lot of abuse and mistreatment, such as non-payment, excessive working hours, travel restrictions, injuries and even death without compensation, among others.

The organizations recognized the progress “in protecting the rights of migrant workers due to the labor reforms introduced by Doha” in recent years. However, these reforms are also believed to have come too late and have been partially implemented. There is still a lot to improve in this aspect.