Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the owner of Paris Saint-Germain, said that the world is being ‘unfair’ to Qatar.
The World Cup hosts have come under fire for a variety of human rights violations, ranging from the treatment of women to the LGBTQ+ community and migrant workers.
Qatari national Al-Khelaifi believed that the World Cup’s press and media coverage had been overly negative.
He said:
I will not comment on what he [Gianni Infantino] said. The world has been so unfair on Qatar. If people come and see about Qatar, Qatari people and what we do, of course we are not perfect here.
Trust me, we are doing our best. We are good people, we treat people with our heart and I was hurt when I saw most people talking negative. That’s not fair at all.
Qatar is a conservative country with strict laws prohibiting the consumption of alcoholic beverages and public displays of affection, regardless of sexual orientation.
There have been controversies in the days leading up to the tournament, including a late U-turn on stadium beer sales.
Due to the threat of FIFA sanctions, seven European nations, including England and Wales, have decided against wearing a rainbow armband advocating for LGBTQ+ rights.
For this tournament, Al-Khelaifi insisted that the country remain open and welcoming to the world.
He said:
Of course, as his Highness the Emir, said everybody is welcome to Qatar. It is an open door with an open heart. We are so excited to receive more people.
He added:
Everybody is so excited. We’ve been waiting for this for 12 years. Everybody is so excited and we are excited as Qataris.
We are excited to have the world come to our country and show them the truth about our country, our people, who love to host and welcome people.