I Believe That We Will Change
On May 7th, I fell in love. I went to my first soccer game. I saw the New England Revolution play against the Columbus Crew. My friend Alana invited me and I don’t think either of us knew what we were getting into. It only took that one game for me to fall completely in love.
There’s just something about being in the stands. Cheering with others, jumping up and down, hoping that your team will score that goal - the one that wins the game. We won that game. I like to think that my presence had something to do with it. I tend to test the limits of my vocal cords and I’m convinced that the players can hear me.
I walked into the stadium, knowing nothing. I walked out of the stadium, wanting to learn everything. I made charts and memorized players. I used every condiment in the fridge to reenact plays. I actually learned the offsides rule. I have committed to the bit, and I understand why they call it the most beautiful game (obviously because of the players, right??).
I want to say that I have loved every minute, but things always get complicated when athletes are paid to play. Capitalism ruins everything good in life. I think I was shocked by how much money is actually involved. There’s really no concept of pay equity (and I haven’t even started to unpack the discrepancy between men and women in the sport). Your team is only as good as the amount of money they spend in the transfer window (I’m not sure if I’m exaggerating here). And a reminder that where there’s capitalism, there’s politics.
As a new fan, I was excited that my new love for the sport coincided with the timing of the World Cup. That is, until I found out that Qatar was hosting.
My family is from Bangladesh. 94 percent of Qatar’s workforce is made up of migrant workers, many of them from countries like Bangladesh. What I know of Qatar, is the abuse of these migrant workers - akin to slavery. I know that if I were to go there, I would experience racism/xenophobia (for being Bangladeshi) and gendered discrimination (for being a woman). This is not a country where people can live in peace, especially when there are so many human rights violations and LGBTQ+ people are not safe to love who they love.
So, how can a country like this win the privilege of hosting the World Cup? Corruption.
There are so many people that have spoken on this issue better than I can. I recommend listening to World Corrupt or reading this piece by Musa Okwonga.
Personally, I was deeply affected by the reports of worker conditions and the deaths of migrant workers. The numbers are horrific. Thousands of people dead from things like heat exhaustion, while Qatar claims that only three people died building the stadiums. They tout these new stadiums steeped in the blood of migrant workers, with no one to hold them accountable.
Not the media - which they have restricted. Not FIFA - whose corruption allowed for this in the first place. Their best bet is that fans will shift their focus once the games start. I think Okwonga says it best: “it is almost as if the current political moment is goading us, asking us just how much more we are prepared to overlook in our lust for a few weeks of entertainment.”
I don’t know how to enjoy this World Cup, knowing what I know. This cup means so much to so many people. I want to shout, and cheer, and bully colleagues in the work zoom channel about which bracket will win. It feels wrong, but what changes if I choose not to watch? What can an individual do to change what’s already been done? That feels like a question that applies to every social justice issue.
I don’t have an answer.
I found this petition asking FIFA to compensate families of migrant workers for their wrongful deaths. Personally, I’d like to hold advertisers accountable and ask them to condemn Qatar’s human rights violations and make donations to organizations working to right these wrongs (for migrant workers, for women, for LGBTQ+ communities). I want a change in FIFA leadership and transparency of votes or some kind of required disclosure of meetings between delegations and “gifts” exchanged. I want a published list of the names of all those who died, so we can remember them forever.
I just want things to be fair. I don’t know how to do that yet.
I did enter the office pool. I watched the first games. I feel guilty and am trying to reconcile these feelings - hence this blog.
I look forward to the end of this World Cup. I look forward to cheering for Liverpool through the season. I look forward to going to the first Revs game of the new year. I’ll still nurture this love of soccer (yea, I know it should be called football). I’ll keep believing that things will change. They have to.
