It's embarrassing that FIFA created this situation, but it's far more embarrassing that a few countries didn't get together years ago and reject the whole idea of a World Cup in Qatar. It would only have taken a few top nations from Europe and South America.<p>Threaten to withdraw from FIFA if the tournament doesn't get cancelled. There's nothing magical about FIFA, it's defined entirely by its membership. It could have been done, and it just wasn't even tried.
Honestly, I have no problem with this guy holding his views, even though I think it isn't right. But, then, why host westerners when you know you're not compatible with their ideas?<p>Qatar would have continued being a rich, oil-funded state without hosting the World Cup and continue to live in peace with their culture and views on morality. I can see where he's coming from (even though I'm not in agreement)...he doesn't want westerners to enforce their views on Qataris, but why try to enforce yours on them?
Most of the non-western world regards homosexuality as somewhere between an unpleasant vice and an abomination [0].<p>Asking a Qatari official his opinion on the subject is either going to solicit a non-answer or negative one. Even if he personally doesn't believe it. So why ask him? What purpose does it serve?<p>[0] <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societal_attitudes_toward_homosexuality" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societal_attitudes_toward_homo...</a>
They can have their rules on public displays of affection (if applied equally to same-sex and opposite-sex couples), but I don't get why they care what consenting adults do in private.