Tromsø, of the highest category of Norwegian football, became this Friday the first club in this Nordic country to officially demand a boycott of the Qatar 2022 World Cup from its federation due to the human rights situation.
“Tromsø encourages the Norwegian Football Federation to support a boycott of the 2022 World Cup. We believe that if Norway qualifies in the next phase, we should say ‘no, thank you’ to travel to Qatar,” says a statement released by this club .
The Norwegian club, recently promoted this season to the Eliteserien and which has two cups and two league runner-ups in its record, recalls that the election of Qatar was marked by accusations of corruption and reports of “unworthy” conditions for the construction workers. Sports facilities.
The strategy of criticism and dialogue with the organizers has not been successful, emphasizes Tromsø, which considers that it is time to reconsider it and describes as “unacceptable” “corruption, modern slavery and a high number of dead workers.”
“That is why we cannot just sit around watching people die in the name of football. It is time to react harshly. Football cannot direct the politics of all nations and their internal affairs, but we can make clear demands on the tournaments we organize. “said the statement.
Fans of other Norwegian clubs have also called for a similar measure in recent months, including those of Rosenborg, the most successful team in football in this Nordic country, which will address the issue at the general assembly to be held next week.
Norway, which has not played a final phase of a major tournament since Euro 2000, is in group G in the European zone, along with the Netherlands, Turkey, Montenegro, Latvia and Gibraltar.
THE (efe)
