"Position concerning the World Cup in Qatar," 16 Mar 2021

On Wednesday, 24 March, the Red Devils will kick off their qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar against Wales. Like this year’s European Championship, the World Cup – if we qualify – should be a major football celebration, and not just for our supporters and our golden generation of footballers. It’s also a wonderful opportunity for the local population. However, it cannot become a celebration if we, the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA), ignore the working conditions in the run-up to the World Cup...

Although the situation of migrant workers is still precarious, Qatar is the only country in the Gulf region that is implementing reforms. In other words, international pressure from human rights organisations, the ILO, and FIFA appears to have been an important catalyst for reform...

The RBFA is not ignoring the problem; it believes that football can play a role as a lever for further improvements. The focus on the World Cup in Qatar will only increase until the end of 2022 and the RBFA wants to use that attention to the fullest to make further reforms possible.