Copa de la Maldición – The Cursed Cup?
“In my life I have never given up, but tonight I have to think about the team.”
The words of Karim Benzema after he was forced to withdraw from the World Cup following a fresh injury sustained in training. The fact that the reigning Ballon d’Or winner was forced to give up his dream on the eve of the biggest tournament in World sport is an appropriate metaphor for Qatar 2022.
The competition starts today, but there is little in the way of World Cup fever. From a questionable bidding process to human rights concerns and the alteration of the timing of the tournament, nothing about this feels right. Some are choosing to boycott or ignore it completely. Others will be following, but with a healthy dose of unease and reluctance.
The World Cup is the World Cup, and only comes around every four years, but the callousness of FIFA and the disingenuity of the organisers makes it almost impossible to celebrate what should be a festival of football.
Gianni Infantino’s comments on Saturday illustrated the abdication of leadership at the helm of football’s governing body. His juvenile attitude provided an almost perfect example of nominative determinism.
If there is one positive, it is that the significant issues around working conditions, migrant workers’ rights and the fan experience will be challenged with a level of scrutiny never seen before, even four years ago in Vladimir Putin’s Russia. If the spotlight can be shone on Qatar, it should set a benchmark for all future tournaments.
As for the football itself, the scale of injuries and withdrawals has matched the pessimism. Staging the tournament in the middle of a domestic season forced domestic football administrators to cram in matches in a constricted calendar. After a short summer, players in elite clubs have been playing every three or four days since September, with inevitable effects.
France could be forgiven for thinking they are cursed, given the absences of Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kanté, Mike Maignan and Presnel Kimpembe. In the last week, Christopher NKunku and Benzema have added to that lengthy list. But Didier Deschamps is far from alone in deploring his depleted resources.
Sadio Mané, the player who scored the wining penalties in both the AFCON final and the World Cup play-off, was injured in Bayern’s penultimate game before the tournament. He was included in the squad but had to drop out earlier this week. It means that the best two footballers according to the Ballon d’Or voting will be absent from the subsequent World Cup, something that has never happened before.
José Gayà suffered a similar fate, in addition to those whose fitness issues prevented them from being called up, such as Mikel Oyarzabal, Gerard Moreno, Reece James and Ben Chilwell.
Altogether it is hard to get excited about the tournament. No amount of sportswashing can eradicate the sea of doubts about Qatar 2022. The show will go on, as it must, but so too must the scrutiny.