Stadium builders demand reparations ahead of World Cup

With the World Cup’s opening scheduled for Sunday, families of migrant workers who built the stadium demanded compensation Thursday from FIFA and Qatar, according to Human Rights Watch. The families said long hours in intense heat led to the death or illness of their loved ones. But Qatar says many of the deaths were due to natural causes which means there is no compensation. A subsidiary of French construction company Vinci  was recently charged with forced labor and other alleged violations of the rights of migrant workers, but the company denies the charges and is fighting them.

How have Qatar and FIFA responded? FIFA said in a statement that they have worked with Qatar to address many of the complaints about labor abuses since Qatar was awarded the World Cup in 2010. Qatar reimbursed $320 million to wage abuse victims through the Workers’ Support and Insurance Fund, according to the International Labour Organization. But that aid started in 2020 and many have fallen through the cracks. The World Cup is the world’s largest sporting event and this is the first time it’s being held in the Middle East.

Dig deeper: Listen to Paul Butler’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about the soccer teams preparing for the World Cup.