Usually ahead of a World Cup I would be posting links to resources: top trumps development games, details on sustainability etc. There would also be additional geography teacher resources on the theme of sport, inequality etc.
This year, I won't be celebrating this event in the same way, and to some extent that was also the case for the previous one, and one could argue any similar event.
Some aspects of the host country, the whole process of awarding the games to Qatar in the first place, building stadia with migrant workers who have lost their lives in their thousands and the general unsustainability of the event, as well as the logistical issues with hosting such a global event in such a remote location are all problematic. Similarly, any country has issues which can be unpicked relating to legislation and actions.
I shall post links through the tournament to 'alternative' resources that could be used to discuss the theme of whether students should boycott this World Cup and the wider issues surrounding its location in Qatar. Some of those do form lesson resources, and you will particularly want to check out Matt Podbury's work in this area, for example, which will be posted as part of the work.
There has been criticism of the payments to particular high profile celebritities, and the involvement of players and commentators etc. There has also been criticism of the criticism, pointing out the hypocrisy of not criticising Russia and China to the same extent (or even the UK one could argue).
There's also been relatively little publicity for the event from the main channels that I have seen, ahead of the opening.
This casts a different perspective on the criticisms of people, and is a reminder of the importance of the danger of the single story.
The Economist piece here is important to read (it is behind a paywall potentially)...
At best, Western criticism of the decision to award the games to Qatar fails to distinguish between truly repugnant regimes and merely flawed ones. At worst, it smacks of blind prejudice https://t.co/mwqOchAHIk pic.twitter.com/CpQmlf1fmE
— The Economist (@TheEconomist) November 18, 2022
There is a comparison with the coverage of the Chinese Olympics, for example.
There is a lot more to come on this in the coming weeks and no doubt lots of schools are having their own discussions in this area.
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