Mercedes boss Toto Wolff shares the same opinion of former Manchester United star Gary Neville when it comes to sports in the Middle East. There has been a host of criticism surrounding the decision to award Qatar this year’s football World Cup.
The tournament has been labelled the latest strand of sports washing across the Middle East, with the region regularly criticised for having a poor human rights record. One man who has been outspoken on the discussion is Neville, who is out in Qatar working as a pundit for Qatari-owned broadcaster beIN SPORTS.
The former Premier League right-back believes that whilst there are issues across the region, sport can help to work out the problems at hand. Defending Qatar in a two-and-a-half minute monologue, he said: “I think there’s then an element of, a lot of the English press have never been over here to this country, and it’s quite difficult once you’re over here and you get to speak to people and learn about what goes on in this region and how things work.
“And not understand that this is, you know, difficult to carry on criticising it when you understand it more and you’re here and you feel it on the ground. That’s definitely happened…
JUST IN: Hong Kong billionaire details Michael Schumacher influence with 10-year F1 masterplan
“Now we come here, we’ve got this massive scrutiny – it’s a positive scrutiny though because kefala has been abolished. We need to make sure all the businesses and companies are abiding by it – we don’t know if that’s the case yet but there are many that are and that’s a positive out of this tournament.”
Football is of course not the only sport that has received criticism for heading out to the Middle East. F1 has plenty of ties to the region, with Grands Prix in both Qatar and Abu Dhabi mainstays on the racing calendar.
DON’T MISS
And like Neville, Mercedes boss Wolff believes sport can be a force for good amid the issues. Speaking in Abu Dhabi at the end of the 2022 season, he said: “I’m still of the belief that when you have such a big sporting event in a country, it puts the spotlight on that country. I think that can trigger change, because things can’t be hidden any more.
“And that’s the kind of positive that I think a sport can do. Things are being addressed.I can’t judge football. I read the newspapers and the headlines. We can just try, where we go to show our presence, to interact with leadership, and not to hide away.”
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
