1. I am not sure if you’re trolling or seriously just not understanding. I don’t expect them to do anything actively. The exact opposite. I am giving up watching, as for many others. That’s our “passive” protests, and voting with our wallets. I am simply saying that the same should apply to players. It’s obviously their choice, and they shouldn’t be forced on anyone. But not travelling to a backward country isn’t really a “sacrifice”

2. of course it matters. Never said it was a “whatever”-event for anyone. Just said it isn’t a once in a lifetime opportunity for any of the European or South American teams. That none of the players will be needing for anything for skipping out one playoff. It’s a prestige project, not anything existential. People have literally lit themselves on fire in that part of the world in an attempt to gain rights. Let’s not call not playing football for 4 weeks a sacrifice, no matter the trophy they are competing for

3. (as I forgot to reply to that last time) adding value matters tremendously. If I started sending money to Al-Queda, wouldn’t people be right to criticise (and imprison me)? Or should I be completely exonerated because nobody was spending their weekends demonstrating, so they aren’t better than me, even though I actively supported a terrorist organisation?

You are right - I am not willing to entertain accepting genocides, slavery, and corruption. Silly me.

You keep calling it a significant sacrifice. It isn’t. It’s very rich people missing out on a prestige project that comes back every other year.

The “sacrifice” I ask is literally doing the same as I am - nothing.

But that comment tells me a lot about who you are, as a person - so I think I am just gonna park this one here, and stop feeding the Saudi Troll.

No, I don’t - because I don’t participate. They add value to the event, I don’t. Can’t you see the difference?

And don’t give me shit like that - I have literally won national championships, and competed internationally. I know exactly what drive it requires to get to where they are. But people are pretending it’s the only one thing they’ve been training for, which it clearly isn’t (for the larger countries anyway). There’s an isentical tournament in 4 years, and other prestigious events in the mean time too. Players there have literally retired from international football earlier, before changing their mind, so it can’t mean that much to them.

I am not participating. Not actively, not passively, not financially. So I would say that my hands are clean in this. They players chose not to clean theirs. It shouldn’t have come to them having to make that decision, just like it shouldn’t come to me making the decision. But it did, and I absolutely judge people on their behaviour, even if it is under circumstances they didn’t create.

They wouldn’t be sacrificing their careers. They’d miss a single playoff, don’t make a mountain out of a molehill. It’s multi millionaires, who would miss out on a prestige project, which comes around every other year. I didn’t claim that it was ruining my career, when it was evident that we should stop doing business in Russia. Because it didn’t a it just sucked to be limited - both in terms of income and prestige - because Putin (or in this case Qatar and FIFA) is an ass.

Of course it’s easy, I will happily admit to that.

And yes, it would suck to give up this kind of event due to some execs being idiotic, corrupt, and greedy. But that doesn’t excuse participation. I have quit a previous job (with better pay and be if it’s than the next) due to what I perceived as unethical behaviour in the leadership. So do many others, it’s not like the football players would be the very first in the world to suffer under moral obligations.

I admire that you say “come once’s for some” unlike many who pretends it’s the only one tournament for all the players. For some countries I absolutely get it: qualification alone is a huge fucking deal, and they should be proud. But that doesn’t go for any of the “one love” teams. All of them have qualified for the last couple of ECs and WCs, and are expected to make the next as well.

Ultimately, I don’t know shit about how I would react in this situation, if I was put in it - and I am happy that it’s highly unlikely that I ever have to find out. But I certainly hope I wouldn’t have gone in the first place - or that I would have taken the plane home now at the very least.

Don’t think it’s the players that created the mess, but they didn’t clean it up either.

And countries are complying. Shame on the federations, and shame on the players who went there.

Above all fuck Qatar, and fuck FIFA. It’s their mess, but the nations shouldn’t participate in it.