Qatar 2022: deserted seats, forbidden armbands, beer prohibited... a World Cup full of controversy

"How beautiful it is for people to put aside what divides them in order to celebrate their diversity and what brings them together at the same time," said Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, at the opening ceremony of the XXII World Cup at the Al Bayt Stadium in Doha (QAT) on 20/11/2022.

The Qatari leader, who was delighted to see the competition finally get underway, almost 12 years after having obtained the right to host it on 02/12/2010, hopes to make the most of what should be the high point of the emirate's soft power strategy.

The situation of migrant workers on construction sites, the rights of sexual minorities, the environmental impact of the construction of infrastructure: there was already no shortage of controversy in the lead-up to the start of the event. In his role as organiser, Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, is working to put an end to the controversies so that football can finally take precedence.

However, the beginning of the World Cup has opened the way to new criticism, starting with one questioning the local population's enthusiasm for football…