‘I love him but this is disappointing’: Robbie Williams faces backlash over ‘Qatar World Cup gig’ amid human rights row
Robbie Williams has come under fire after it was announced he will be performing in Qatar during the World Cup.
The decision by FIFA to hold the World Cup in Qatar has been surrounded by controversy – particularly in relation to migrant workers and the LGBTQ+ community.
The singer, 48, who previously performed at the opening ceremony of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, was unveiled as one of the music acts set to play at the Qatar Live concerts during a press conference in Doha.
Backlash: Robbie Williams has come under fire after it was announced he will be performing in Qatar during the World Cup
Robbie is set to play at Doha Golf Club on December 8, alongside Maroon 5 and Post Malone, who were also reported to be playing gigs that coincide with the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Fans expressed their ‘disappointment’ after learning the news on the Robbie Williams Fanfest page.
One penned: ‘Sorry but the Qatar World Cup is wrong on many levels and I am disappointed that Robbie feels it is acceptable to so blatantly support it.’
Another said: ‘I love him but this is disappointing.’
A third wrote: ‘Hope thats not True’ with another adding: ‘That’s sad, really sad.’
Performance: The singer, 48, who previously performed at the opening ceremony of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, was unveiled as one of the music acts set to play at the Qatar Live concerts during a press conference in Doha
One asked: ‘How do fans make an official protest? For him to be pressured by his fans to then be persuaded to then choose not to appear would be a massive statement on behalf of all those human beings who are affected by both the construction regime there and also their attitudes in respect of other things. I know nothing about online petitions!’
While another added: ‘Surely he has a voice/opinion on it…… So disappointing.’
The fan page responded to the comments: ‘We’re just reporting the news as we find it. Rob’s team will have made the decision for him to perform there.’
Robbie’s representatives did not comment when approached by MailOnline.
Fuming: Fans expressed their ‘disappointment’ after learning the news on the Robbie Williams Fanfest page
Qatar has faced intense scrutiny of the physical and contractual conditions for hundreds of thousands of migrant workers in the tiny emirate since the World Cup hosting rights were won 12 years ago.
It’s yet to be seen how much time World Cup broadcasters will spend highlighting the allegations against the Qatari government, which include 2013 claims by The Guardian that workers were denied food, water, and were stripped of their passports.
Some allege they were not paid, or if they were, the payments were minimal and long overdue. A 2019 Daily Mirror investigation found that 28,000 workers were paid roughly $1 an hour over a 48-hour week.
The fan page responded to the comments: ‘We’re just reporting the news as we find it. Rob’s team will have made the decision for him to perform there.’
Most damning, The Wall Street Journal reported in 2015 that over 1,200 workers died building the infrastructure for the tournament. Last year, The Guardian put that figure at closer to 6,500.
Qatar also punishes homosexuality with imprisonment and considers men to be the guardians of their female relatives.
In March, FIFA president Gianni Infantino claimed Qatar has been progressive on labor rights: ‘I am pleased to see the strong commitment from the Qatari authorities to ensure the reforms are fully implemented across the labor market, leaving a lasting legacy of the FIFA World Cup long after the event, and benefiting migrant workers in the host country in the long term.’
Awful: Qatar has faced intense scrutiny of the physical and contractual conditions for hundreds of thousands of migrant workers who were needed in the tiny emirate since the World Cup hosting rights were won 12 years ago
It comes after was told he’s made a ‘big mistake’ in taking an ambassadorial role for the Qatar World Cup, by former team-mate Eric Cantona.
The ex-England international has come under fire in recent months for his decision to be a ‘face’ of the tournament and has been accused of duplicity in the country’s sportswashing campaign.
And now Cantona, who Beckham knows well from their time at Manchester United, has urged the England icon to re-think his stance and suggests Beckham isn’t aware of ‘what has happened there’.
When asked if he would ever adopt a similar role to Beckham, Cantona told the Athletic: ‘I would not do it at all. I do completely the opposite. In January 2022, I started to say that. Maybe I was the first one.
‘But I am free to do it. And of course, an ex-player paid to do this kind of thing… It could be they don’t know what has happened there. Or, if they know it, I think they did wrong. I think they made a big mistake. A big, big mistake.’
Backlash: David Beckham has been urged to reverse his decision to become the face of Qatar 2022
In February, it was announced that Beckham agreed a £10million deal to become an ambassador for the country over the decade, which has resulted in him being the face of the World Cup 2022.
Cantona continued: ‘If you have a player who says, “I will boycott the World Cup”, you say, “Bravo”. But you cannot condemn a 20-year-old player, who has a 10-year career, who lives in a world surrounded by people from football 24 hours per day.
‘But do speak about the federations, speak about the politicians, who have the power to say, “No, we do not go to the World Cup”.
‘We cannot be disappointed if players don’t want to boycott the World Cup, because at the top, the politicians, the presidents, the federations, the ministers… they have the power to boycott it.’
In June, human-rights organisation Amnesty International renewed it’s criticism of David Beckham after he heaped praise on Qatar but ignored its appalling human rights record.
Advice: Eric Cantona claims his former Man United team-mate ‘doesn’t know what has happened there’
During an interview for Neville’s Sky Bet-sponsored YouTube show The Overlap, Beckham said: ‘Speaking as a fan, I’ve been coming to Qatar now for a number of years. I’ve seen the hospitality, the warmth of the people.
‘We talk about football being for everybody, we talk about the World Cup being for everybody and this is the first time the World Cup is being hosted in this region and that is an incredible moment.
In a statement, Amnesty responded: ‘It’s glossy and full of footballing anecdotes, but it’s a shame the film makes no mention at all of Qatar’s long history of labour abuses, its shocking criminalisation of homosexuality or in fact any other human rights issue.
‘When David Beckham secured his lucrative deal to be an ambassador for football in Qatar, we said he ought to use his unique profile to keep the world’s focus on human rights issues surrounding the Qatar World Cup. This feels like a missed opportunity.’
Deal: Beckham agreed a £10million deal to become ambassador for the country over the decade
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