Al-Arabiya, Saudi Arabia, October 15
As the crisis in the Gulf continues to unfold, a new scandal looms over Doha: the World Cup games scheduled to be held in Qatar in 2022. According to several sources in FIFA, the international football association, the Qatari government bribed numerous officials in order to win the right to host the upcoming games, despite lacking the necessary infrastructure to put on an event of such magnitude. To make up for this gap, Qatari authorities have reportedly spent over $200 billion to date on the construction of an Olympic park—an unprecedented project in the country’s history, which has cost the average citizen roughly $100,000 in taxpayer’s money. All of this superfluous spending was done simply to boost Doha’s prestige, with no real regard to the World Cup; a sporting event designed to bring together the people of the world in unity and friendship. The Qatari government’s true colors were already revealed when its support for terror groups across the region was exposed a few months ago. Since then, Doha has refused to reconcile with its neighbors and continues to spread its radical ideology throughout the Middle East. Qatar was never meant to host the World Cup, and is certainly not worthy of doing so. FIFA is thus considering alternatives, including the possibility of hosting the football competition in London. The World Cup must not take place in Qatar. – Mohammad al-Sheikh