World Soccer - UK (2022-01)

BOOKS

THIS

MONTH

Fit& ProPerPeoPle

ByMartinCalladine

andJamesCave(Pitch

Publishing,£12.99)

In 2019 , an appcalled

OwnaFChitthemarket

promisingfootball fans

thechancetobuyand

runtheirown club. Just

a fewmonthslater it

collapsed,leaving

customershundreds

ofthousandsofpounds

outofpocket.Fitand

Proper Peopletells the

story of thebusiness

thatwassupposedto

revolutionisethe game,

thepeoplewholost out

andthe consequences

sufferedby those

whotriedtohold

OwnaFCtoaccount.

taxiForKiev

BySteveDeponeo(Pitch

Publishing,£16.99)

TaxiforKiev:Six

Strangers,Six Borders,

SixDaysisthe true and

uncensoredstoryof six

ladsfromverydifferent

backgroundswhohad

never metbefore but

foundkinshipina

commongoal:to get

toKievfor the 2019

Champions Leaguefinal

between Liverpool and

RealMadrid.They

embarkedona 3,5 00

-miletaxitripthattook

themtomanyplaces-

physically,mentallyand

emotionally. It is one

man’saccountofthat

unforgettablesix-day

adventure - with shocks,

tearsandlaughsaplenty.

GlobalfootballintelliGence

fortheweekbetweentheWorld
CupfinalandthePremier League’s
resumptiononBoxing Day. So it may
bethatany PremierLeagueclubs
willhavetoput outweakenedteams
butthen,theymostlydothisanyway
atthatstageinthecompetition.
Allclear?
WhenQatarbidfor theWorld
Cupit placedgreatemphasison
thepotentialofair-cooledstadiato
combatthe intenseheatofsummer
temperaturesinthe Gulf. Thiswriter
attendeda matchintheAl Sadd
stadiumwiththecoolersworking.
A visionwascreatedofvastswathes
oflanddevotedto solarpanelsto
generate theessentialenergy.
MichelPlatini,then-president
ofUEFA anda formerWorldCup
star, wasvociferousindemanding
a winterWorldCup forthesakeof
theplayers.Thiswaseventually
approvedbyFIFA andwith
comparativelylittlecomplaintfrom
themajorEuropeanleagues.
Perhaps,atthe time, they thought
theQatarWorldCupwastoo far
intothedistance to be of concern.
Somelong-timecriticsofthe
Qatar awardand thescandal-
scarred selectionprocessprobably
hopedthatthe Gulfstatewouldbe
strippedofthe finalsforonereason
oranotherandthenthesummer/
winterissuewouldnotarise.
Thisoutcomewasneverrealistic
oncecontracts hadbeensigned.
Sonow Qatar 2022 islooming
onfootball’s horizon,bringing
theWorldCup to theMiddle
Eastforthefirsttime.
Top-flightclubsinEurope
mayworrythatfanswilllosethe
habitofattending matchesbutsuch
concernshavebeeneased by the
eagernessofspectatorstoreturn
tothe stadiaaftertheCOVID- 19
lockdowns.
Indeed,the sport’s abilityto
shuffle andshiftinresponsetothe
pandemicsuggeststhatitcanand
willnegotiatetheQatarWorldCup
disruptionfarmoreefficiently than
criticsfear.
Disquiethasalsobeenvoiced
aboutthe on-goingloyaltyof

disruptedbroadcastersandsponsors.

Here, at least,reassuranceexistsin

Qatar’s fixture shiftbeinga one-off

event.TheWorldCup finalswillbe

backtoJune/Julyin 2026 and the

potentialEuropeanandSouth

Americanbiddersfor 2030 willall

bestickingtothetraditionalwindow.

Evena possibleChinesehostingin

2034 wouldfollowsuit.

Controversyisnothingnewfor

theQataris.Ithassurroundedthe

tournamenteversincethefamous

(orinfamous)votesby theFIFA

executive committeein December

2010 , whichsaw Russiaawarded

2018 , andQatar beatingAustralia,

Japan,South Koreaandthe

UnitedStatestoland 2022.

Qatar hasriddenfierce

internationalpressureover the

treatmentandsafetystandardsfor

thethousandsof migrantworkers

buildingthe gasandoil-richstate.

Thekafalasystemoftiedcontracts

wasabolished,officiallyatleast,and

improved rulesandregulationswere

enactedforstadiumconstruction.

Thesedidnotapplytoworkerson

supportive infrastructuralprojects

butenoughprogresswas achieved

tosatisfy internationallabour

organisations.

Humanrights,including

particularlyLGBTQ+concerns, is

anothermatter.AdelaideUnited’s

JoshCavallo– theonlyopenly

gayfootballerata top-flightclub

inthe world– hassaidhewould

be“fearful”ofplayingatthe

tournament.

PlayersfromGermany,the

NetherlandsandNorwayall staged

pre-matchT-shirtprotestsover

humanrights concernswhilestars

ofseveral othercountries,including

England,willdiscusswhetherto

followsuit.Amnesty International will

ensuretheissueplaysright up to the

openingmatch,asinRussiain 2018.

Gareth Southgate,diplomatically

cautiousaseverinstrayingbeyond

hismanagerialcomfort zone,says:

“I’vebeenin someconversationsas

partof an FA delegationwithpeople

fromQatar,tryingtoget a better

understanding of thesituation. We

havetobecertainonwhoweshould

bespeakingtoand exactlywhat

issuesare important.

“Wewillbe representingthe

countryina foreignlandsowehave

tobe 10 0 percentsureofourfacts.

Thereareclearculturaldifferences

betweenthenationsandwe, as a

nation,doa lotofbusinesswith

Qatar.Wehavetotakethe timeto

educateourselvesandifthere are

areaswecanhighlightandhelp,

clearly we willdo that.”

BythenSouthgate– like

DidierDeschamps, HansiFlick,

LouisvanGaaland Co.– will have

otherpressingpriorities,whiletheir

players’clubsbalanceanyreflected

gloryagainst impatiencetogetback

downtobusinessonce thecircus

hasleft town.

Pss...Gmnyhbnmnghms bjcQ’shsngfhunmn