After years in the making, the World Cup in Qatar kicked off with a colourful opening ceremony on Sunday watched by millions across the globe. But in a bold move, the BBC chose to address the many controversies surrounding the event and spurned showing the ceremony live on TV.
Instead of broadcasting the opening which saw acting legend Morgan Freeman at its heart, Gary Lineker fronted coverage which addressed the treatment of migrant workers who built the stadiums, women's rights, the fact that homosexuality is illegal in Qatar and the allegations of corruption aimed at FIFA.
In a sombre beginning to the BBC's coverage of the tournament, Lineker said: "Ever since FIFA chose Qatar to host the World Cup in 2010, the smallest nation to have hosted football's greatest competition has faced some big questions. From accusations of corruption in the bidding process to the treatment of migrant workers who built the stadiums, where many lost their lives.
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"Homosexuality is illegal here. Women's rights and freedom of expression are in the spotlight. Also the decision six years ago to switch the World Cup from summer to winter. Against that backdrop there is a tournament to be played, one that will be watched and enjoyed around the world. Stick to football, say FIFA, well we will, for a couple of minutes, at least."
As the million-pound opening ceremony played out, with actor Morgan Freeman addressing the crowd and BTS member Jungkook performing, BBC viewers watched an interview with Amnesty International, former England international Alex Scott tore into FIFA president's Gianni Infantino's odd address to the media and Alan Shearer asked why FIFA had not contributed to a compensation fund for migrant workers.
The contrast became even clearer as the ceremony, which itself lasted fewer than 30 minutes, continued. Guardian media editor Jim Waterson noted that at the same time Jungkook performed his new song, with upbeat lyrics including “Look who we are, we are the dreamers / We’ll make it happen because we believe it”, the BBC's coverage focused instead on Ros Atkins explaining the human and environmental cost of the Qatar world cup.
And the BBC weren't the only ones to shun the show. It was not shown live on BBC One, with the broadcaster showing live coverage of the Women's Super League fixture between Chelsea and Tottenham instead, but ITV did also not show the first game, meaning the ceremony was not live on British television. The BBC did show live coverage of the ceremony - without commentary - on their website.
Meanwhile, those who did tune into the ceremony would have seen Freeman deliver his speech as he chatted with Qatari influencer Ghanim al Muftah, who was born with caudal regression syndrome - a rare disorder which impairs the development of the lower spine, the Mirror reports. "We sent out the call because everyone is welcome," said the influencer. "This is an invitation to the whole world."
To which Freeman replied: "I remember, even after hearing the call, instead of seeing another way, we dismissed it and demanded our own way. And now the world feels even more distant and divided."
Viewers on social media expressed praise for the coverage, and the willingness by the broadcaster to address the controversies surrounding the tournament. Writing on Twitter, Hannah said: "Good on the BBC for not brodcasting the opening ceremony of the #FIFAWorldCup2022 Allowing a country with such a poor human rights history to host a World Cup is disgusting!!!"
Dan wrote: "I didn't watch the match today; but from what I've seen from clips so far, the BBC's approach to their coverage has been superb."
Joe McNally said: "Well done the BBC for eschewing the opening ceremony in favour of highlighting the corruption and skullduggery involved in Qatar 22."
However, there were some that were upset with the coverage. Safia said: "Feel robbed by the BBC today. It would’ve been cool if they had just made an announcement saying they wouldn’t be broadcasting the opening ceremony. Kinda felt like an ambush."
Rich Jackson said: "I think the BBC punditry team and presentation ethos has managed to offend me more through their rank hypocrisy, than Qatar has for hosting the World Cup in the first place!"
After about half an hour into the coverage, the subject changed to the football itself. But unlike other broadcasters, the BBC focused their coverage on the issues behind one of the most controversial World Cups in the history of the world's biggest sporting event.
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