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LloydDoyley t1_iviu03l wrote

Reply to comment by Nutaholic in Thousands urge FIFA to boot Iran out of World Cup over Russian 'kamikaze drones' by 29PiecesOfSilver

It's always been the way. The 1934 WC in Italy was Mussolini's chance to promote fascism on a the international stage, 1966 went to a nation with empire and its associated atrocities still well in play, the 1978 WC was held in Argentina when an army dictatorship was in charge, 1994 would need a novel on what the USA has done and continues to do, 2010 was held in one of the most crime-ridden countries in the world, then there was 2018 in Russia.

(E: Added England in 1966, thanks u/tennisguy1234567)

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tennisguy1234567 t1_ivivgch wrote

And England in 1966, right?

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LloydDoyley t1_ivivphy wrote

You could argue that, yes

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tennisguy1234567 t1_ivivsni wrote

Buddy, England should be one of the first, if not the first, on that list. For you to exclude it altogether is biased as fuck.

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LloydDoyley t1_ivizbhb wrote

Nah you're right mate. It should be there. Edited.

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h0bbie t1_ivjmqtv wrote

Honest question: who could best host a World Cup while not qualifying for inclusion in your list of negatives? I’m struggling. Australia maybe?

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LloydDoyley t1_ivjqqdy wrote

Every country has their negatives, of course. Just don't give it to a country with no infrastructure, no footballing heritage or even its own established league. FWIW I didn't really have much against 2018 in Russia because it satisfied all of these factors, even though there's a crazy despot in charge.

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h0bbie t1_ivjt6av wrote

Oh I’m definitely not defending Qatar as the choice. 😃 and I agree with your criteria.

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Ferris_Wheel_Skippy t1_ivkng8v wrote

yeah this is something people need to remember

when it comes to atrocities, yes every country has blood on its hands to a certain extent

that being said, that wasn't the only reason why picking Qatar was such a stupid choice. It's tiny as fuck, they've never had much of a World Cup history (if any at all) prior to 2022, and the worst part was the weather. I still can't believe there is a fuckign world cup in less than two weeks as opposed to it being played in the summer

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Cyhawkboy t1_ivkltky wrote

Oh stop. By your logic only countries like Mongolia or Tuvalu deserve to host the World Cup. There is a line that has to be crossed and perhaps using slaves is it.

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LloydDoyley t1_ivkp9mv wrote

I did not express any opinion on the matter, just that shit happens and people still go to these world cups and still watch them and still consume the content.

My only real gripe with it going to Qatar is that they don't have the infrastructure, don't even have an established league and are not a footballing nation.

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Cyhawkboy t1_ivl1ci2 wrote

The word you are looking for is sport-washing and that is exactly what Qatar is doing here. I’d argue Qatar has very little culture in the first place. A city- state built on oil reserves. In 3 months, after the World Cup is over, all that people will remember it’s that they hosted a World Cup and that’s all that matters to them despite the money spent and the lives lost.

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LloydDoyley t1_ivl2qmr wrote

You've made the point all by yourself. People will remember it because they'll be watching it. At the end of the day not enough people care enough.

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Cyhawkboy t1_ivl43p8 wrote

I guess I fail to see the comparison between Qatar 2022 and England 1966. Entirely different is my point.

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LloydDoyley t1_ivl6niu wrote

Every country that's ever hosted any major event has used it to boost their profile on the world stage. Qatar is no different. And any country that has the resources to host such a tournament will always have gained much of their wealth by questionable means.

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Ferris_Wheel_Skippy t1_ivkn5us wrote

>the 1978 WC was held in Argentina when an army dictatorship was in charge,

if I remember correctly, Cruyff bitched out at Dutch officials and the manager and used "political reasons" to boycott the 1978 World Cup

I think for years this is what people believed and it wasn't until after he died when people realized he boycotted because he threw a Roy Keane-esque tantrum

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LloydDoyley t1_ivkph05 wrote

Lol yeah. To be honest I don't think the players should be forced to have an opinion on this either.

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