BBC presenter Gary Lineker was unhappy when Qatar was selected to host the World Cup 2022, and it seems as though his disappointment will continue through 2026, when the “extraordinarily racist” US will be home to the event.
Lineker, 62, has been vocal in his criticism of Qatar’s human rights record. During the World Cup 2022’s opening ceremonies Lineker spent the time discussing alleged systemic human rights violations carried out by Qatari officials.
The Times reports that Qatar 2022 secretary general Hassan Al-Thawadi said the segment was “very racist” and called for a “balanced view” from the BBC.
Lineker defended his views, saying he would have been critical of any host country with deeply entrenched societal issues.
“We pointed facts out at the beginning of the tournament; those facts remain,” he said. “So, lots of people were killed doing the stadiums. Yes, the stadiums are extraordinary, but at a great price. Homophobia is an issue here, women’s rights are a little bit of an issue here.”
He said the issue was “corruption,” noting that “I think pretty much every country, including our own, has got issues.”
That’s when he turned his attention to the US, which will host the World Cup 2026 alongside Canada and Mexico.
“And we’re off to America in four years’ time, with Canada and Mexico, but obviously America’s an extraordinarily racist country,” he said. “So, there’s always issues but it was more the fact that we just pointed out a few facts and particularly the aspect of it being so corrupt — they said it was going to be summer and it was in the winter.”
Despite asserting that all countries have issue, Lineker did argue during his opening speech that the World Cup being hosted in Qatar made it the “most controversial in [World Cup] in history.”
Lineker discussed workers rights and the nation’s discriminatory LGBT+ laws during the opening segment and criticised Fifa president Gianni Infantino for selected Qatar to host the tournament.