This has been an especially unusual week in the soccer world.
The aftermath of Qatar winning the 2022 World Cup has swirled some controversy, with FIFA president Sepp Blatter being the main culprit after his remarks about homosexuals keeping to themselves at the tournament when it comes around in twelve years.
Blatter's comments on the subject were ones of buffoonery because all fans should have the right to enjoy a live World Cup experience if they so please. No one should be excluded or made less of in something as beautiful and world-unifying as the World Cup, whether you're homosexual, bisexual, white, black, Muslim, Jewish, Christian, etc.
At the same time, though, his comments are kind of a 'word-to-the-wise.'
Qatar 2022 is/will be one of the riskiest World Cups FIFA has ever put together. The Middle East is a place where people from the western world need to know local customs and rules for their own safety. FIFA is asking a lot out of Qatar, a country with only one big city and airport, but also from the fans who make the tournament so magical.
There's always the fear of crime and violence at a World Cup, but what Qatar brings along with those things is uncertainty. Qatar has never held a sporting event anywhere near as large as the World Cup. South Africa has one of the largest crime rates in the world, but they had held large sporting events before the 2010 World Cup, giving the nation some credibility (It didn't hurt much to have Nelson Mandela around, too).
Qatar brings a laundry list of questions that have never been needed, like: 1) How will they help fans deal with the excruciating heat? 2) How will they keep everyone entertained and spread out with only one big city? 3) How will the locals interact with people of such different cultures? 4) How will they regulate their laws and customs with so many people from more lenient cultures? 5) How will they draw comparable numbers like in previous World Cups when alcohol is illegal?
It's a true test for FIFA. One that could defy all odds and finally shine a better light on the Middle East and bring better relations with one of the most misunderstood areas in the world... That's a huge task, though.
These are uncharted waters FIFA/Blatter/bribed old men of the World Cup committee, so you better know what you're doing because I for one was pulling for an Australian World Cup (Take a second and think about how awesome that would be. Plus, they've already held a very successful Olympics and have multiple big cities), not to mention that many Americans are still upset with you skipping North America when it would have been our turn in the continental cycle.
FIFA is gambling on this one. Let's hope the house isn't bottom dealing.
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