The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) has been under fire in recent weeks over their decisions on their handling of the Nov. 21 Brazil-Argentina match amidst mismanaged oversight of World Cup host nations.
In a historic bout, Brazil suffered their first ever home loss during a World Cup qualifier, falling to Argentina 1-0, however, the match itself was overshadowed by violence amongst the fans.
Before the match, chaos broke out as fans from both nations were separated by Brazilian police who were seen clubbing Argentine fans with their batons.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino issued a statement condemning the violence that transpired before the game, saying that the behaviors, “have no place in our sport or society.”
After the historic win, Argentinian forward Lionel Messi took to Instagram to air out his frustrations.
“Great victory in the Maracana although it will be marked by the repression of the Argentinians once again in Brazil. This can’t be tolerated, it’s crazy and it needs to end now!”
This comes at a time where FIFA is already under fire for the bid process of the 2034 World Cup, with only Saudi Arabia placing their hat in the ring for the chance to host.
This prompted an immediate response from human rights groups in an effort to ensure FIFA is upholding their human rights commitments. In the buildup to the 2034 bid, Saudi Arabia is expected to lay out a human rights plan regarding their workers involved in the World Cup expansion by July 2024.
Previous World Cup host Qatar was found to overwork stadium workers, and were similarly criticized for their poor human rights record.
FIFA closed off bidding from countries outside the Asia and Oceania regions in an effort to host the World Cup on five different continents within an eight year period.
This comes with public speculation that it is being set up for Saudi Arabia as the 2030 World Cup is to open in Uruguay, and then move to be co-hosted by Morocco, Spain and Portugal.
With the rule in place to not be able to host on the same continent within eight years, this makes the only realistic countries Saudi Arabia and Australia, as many countries in the region lack the proper funding.
The New York Times recently uncovered the relationship between the FIFA president and plans of Saudi Arabia hosting the World Cup, pointing towards other countries like Norway being skeptical of the decision.
In August when Saudi Arabia got the bid, people were upset, a sentiment that has grown due to the events that transpired during Tuesday’s match.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Saudi Arabia’s sports minister, hopes that this World Cup bid will help Saudi Arabia’s dream of being one of the leaders in the sports world. Over the past two years, the Roshn Saudi League, also backed by the Nation Public Investment Fund, has attracted stars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar to help build support for the league.
FIFA has eyes on the organization to not have a repeat, while Saudi Arabia continues to campaign for a spot at the top of the sports world.