Fifa calls ‘not good’ and World Cup award ‘baffling’

Football fan Mish Keatman – from LGBT supporters group for Leeds United, Marching Out Together – has given her views on Fifa’s call for countries to “focus on the football” as the Qatar World Cup nears.

World football’s governing body has written to all 32 participating nations, stating that football should not be “dragged” into ideological or political “battles” and it should not be “handing out moral lessons”.

Qatar’s status as host nation has come under heavy scrutiny because of its stance on same-sex relationships, its human rights record and its treatment of migrant workers.

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast, Leeds fan Keatman said: “It’s like a lot of footballers and high-profile celebrities get told a lot of the time, to shut up and stay in their lane.

“There may be a footballer playing for any country who is gay and hasn’t yet publicly come out. They may not feel comfortable in going.

“It’s easy to say ‘just go out there and play football and ignore all of the rest of the things.’ It’s not a good thing for Fifa to have done I believe.”

On whether she would travel to Qatar, Keatman said she would not feel comfortable “at all”.

“I wasn’t happy about this decision made,” she added. “It’s a place where law means same-sex activity has punishment. This is 2022. To have high-profile football, a massive sport, a World Cup in a country where human rights are not really human rights really, it’s a baffling decision.”

You can listen to the debate from 07:06 GMT here