David Beckham is continuing to attract criticism over his close ties with Qatar in the run-up to the controversial football World Cup which gets under way on Sunday afternoon.
The former England football star, who made his name during an illustrious career playing for Manchester United and Real Madrid, signed a multi-million pound deal last year to be the ‘face of Qatar’ - including a reported £10m package to be an official ambassador for the 2022 World Cup which will be watched by billions across the globe over the coming weeks.
Beckham visited Doha in 2021 to meet dignitaries and visit stadiums ahead of only the second World Cup to be held in Asia, and the first to ever be held in a Muslim-majority nation. Get our brilliant 48-page Wales at the World Cup souvenir guide to the tournament.
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Many have spoken out about FIFA’s decision to hold its flagship event in Qatar, given the country’s major human rights violations, its mistreatment of migrant workers who have made the staging of the tournament possible, and its stance on the LGBT+ community - homosexuality is illegal in the country and punishable by a possible prison sentence or even the death penalty.
Despite these concerns, several high-profile figures have agreed to work alongside Qatari organisers to promote the tournament. Chief among them is Beckham, who also had a stint playing for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), the French club which is owned by Qatar Sports Investments. Di Cunningham, co-founder of Three Lions Pride - a fan group for LGBT+ England supporters - is one of those to criticise the former England captain. She said: “One of the difficulties we’re having is people taking the money in order to promote Qatar, to promote the World Cup.
“We’re just so disappointed because the LGBTQ+ community has had David Beckham on a pedestal as a great ally, and then it turns out he’s an ambassador for this World Cup and that’s incredibly disappointing. So I hope the message has got through that people will be criticised for that. Three Lions Pride will not be travelling to this World Cup, mainly because we understand from our counterparts in Qatar that our presence would render them vulnerable to systematic, institutional and potentially vigilante abuse.”
Earlier this week, political journalist and consultant editor of the Daily Mail, Andrew Pierce, appeared on ITV’s Good Morning Britain and said: “As you know I don’t watch football, but I would not go to that country as a gay man because I would be very worried. As for David Beckham, he should be hanging his head in shame. He is a gay icon, hugely popular around the world, and he’s doing this for one reason: millions in the bank.”
Watch Joe Lycett pose an ultimatum to David Beckham
A week before the big kick-off in Qatar, comedian Joe Lycett shared a video on social media criticising Beckham and giving the retired footballer an ultimatum. Lycett said that if Beckham reneged on his deal with Qatar ahead of the World Cup, he would give £10,000 of his own money to LGBT+ charities. However, if Beckham did nothing, Lycett would instead shred the cash on a live stream to be broadcast online. He also e-mailed Beckham’s PR team about the issue and told them “there’s still time for David and his team to do the right thing”.
A close friend of Beckham’s, former Manchester United and England defender Gary Neville, has defended his former teammate. Neville, who has himself attracted criticism for working for Qatari state-funded broadcaster beIN Sports during the World Cup, told the Daily Mail: “Beckham, to be fair to him, has a relationship with the Qataris through his relationship with PSG, and the work he has done in terms of amplifying our country through the world is probably second to none in the past five to 10 years.”
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