Qatar are hosting the World Cup next month but are under the spotlight for their treatment of migrant workers and LGBT+ people and Australia have drawn attention to it with a strong statement
Australia has become the first World Cup team to publicly hit out at Qatar’s human rights record.
Their stark video message came 24 days before the opening game of the tournament. It criticises the host nation’s treatment of migrant workers and LGBTQ+ people.
And it warned the “suffering” felt by workers and their families caused by the tournament “cannot be ignored”. The video calls for “effective remedy” for migrant workers and the decriminalisation of same-sex relationships.
Captain Mat Ryan, Sunderland defender Bailey Wright, Hearts’ Kye Rowles and Alex Wilkinson, the president of their players’ union, all take part.