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[McFlash]

That’s very different though. There is a huge identity question in the UK with people being 2nd or 3rd generation British and feeling unsure if they are British or the nationality of their parents, grandparents or ancestors.

Very different to claiming nationality through a technicality or career move.

That's it. I have English, Irish and Welsh in me and my mum was born in India.
So I suppose I could pick any of those to compete for but that's not the point.
I'd be doing it because I have links to that nation and some sense of feel for it.

This whole nation has been a mix of so many different countries and cultures, I'm not even sure that we have a national identity in the true sense of the word anymore.
We are a total amalgamation of everything that has happened to us, over 100's of years.

Our national identity is a mixture of so many nations and I for one, love that about our country

 

[KILLA_SIN]

One of the (few) good things about this country is that we welcome all, as do many other European countries.
We don't take people just to make our national team better.
The Qatar national team has pretty much created a team of people just to try and compete at this tournament.

It's a totally different thing.

I think that's up for question

 

[KILLA_SIN]

That’s very different though. There is a huge identity question in the UK with people being 2nd or 3rd generation British and feeling unsure if they are British or the nationality of their parents, grandparents or ancestors.

Very different to claiming nationality through a technicality or career move.

I reckon every Indian/Sri Lankan or Pakistani born in England was good enough to play for the country of their parents of grandparents they would over England

 

[McFlash]

I think that's up for question

I don't think it is.
Yes, there are ignorant fuckers everywhere but on the whole, it's really not the case. This is a pretty welcoming place, as far as I see.

 

[Johnny J]

BBC ignores World Cup opening ceremony in favour of Qatar criticism

UK coverage kicks off with focus on treatment of migrant workers and gay people, and corruption at Fifa

www.theguardian.com

 

[McFlash]

I reckon every Indian/Sri Lankan or Pakistani born in England was good enough to play for the country of their parents of grandparents they would over England

What, like Adil Rasheed, Moeen Ali or Monty Panesaar? As examples off the top of my head.
Or are they not good enough in your opinion?

 

[dontcallme]

I reckon every Indian/Sri Lankan or Pakistani born in England was good enough to play for the country of their parents of grandparents they would over England

No idea, as I can't speak for every person from any ethnicity.

 

[Houdini]

BBC ignores World Cup opening ceremony in favour of Qatar criticism

UK coverage kicks off with focus on treatment of migrant workers and gay people, and corruption at Fifa

www.theguardian.com

I couldn't believe they done this...? When I heard about Morgan Freeman I thought wtf?

 

[riggi]

 

[JCRD]

Apparently there was a crush or two in the fan parks - no doubt they will blame it on 'drunks' and ban beer altogether haha... I mean that would be hilarious in an unfunny way.

 

[BuryMeInEngland]

 

[nipponyid]

Apparently there was a crush or two in the fan parks - no doubt they will blame it on 'drunks' and ban beer altogether haha... I mean that would be hilarious in an unfunny way.

 

[C0YS]

English ethnic? Is that even a thing
anymore?
One of the (few) good things about this country is that we welcome all, as do many other European countries.
We don't take people just to make our national team better.
The Qatar national team has pretty much created a team of people just to try and compete at this tournament.

It's a totally different thing.

That's not a fair reflection of what is happening. Qatar has naturalised players, sometimes cynically, but certainly not systematically.

Qatar is a small country with a strong economy, and like many small countries with large economies it relies on immigration. Only 300,000 people who live in Qatar are 'Qatari's' so about 2 million are not Qatari. That is, and always has been, reflected in there national team. If you want to see a European example look at Luxembourg.

In terms of Qatar quickly naturalising players there isn't much evidence to suggest that this was done in systematic level.

Of the players not born in Qatar you have:

Ro-Ro = was born in Portugal was absolutely naturalised for footballing purposes. Keep in mind Costa for Spain and Thiago Motta for Italy are recent examples of naturalized players.

Kheder - Born in Sudan, but has been living in Qatar since he was 16 at the youngest but probably was raised there. Unlikely it fits what is being suggested.

Al Rawi - Iraqi born. UAE made a massive song and dance about his eligibility. But was dismissed as baseless, and frankly I believe it was a whole load of sour grapes. He went to school in Qatar before joing a football academy. It is possible that he was specifically bought in for football purposes. Personally I see it unlikely, but you pick what you want.

Khoukhi - yes. Naturalised Algerian.

Waad - Iraqi born but, again, was raised in Qatar from his late teens at the latest onwards.

Ali Assadella - born in Barahin but lived in Qatar from 15 onwards.

Boudiaff - yes, naturalised french Algerian.

Alaaeldin - born in Egypt migrated to Qatar at 10. No way you can interpret this as something cynical.

Muntari- yes, naturalised Ghanaian.

Ali - born in Sudan. Another one UAE complained about. Reality is he has lived in Qatar since at least the age of 7, but most probably even before that. He also likely has a Qatari mother.

So what we have is 4 naturalised players. Then maybe another 4 you could argue about on the basis they were bought young but may have arrived to join the aspire academy. But even if that is true those are 4 players developed in Qatar. Mostly, though, this isn't a particularly remarkable number of foreign born players considering the context in which Qatar is in.

The main reason for Qatar quickly improving has actually got much more to do with incredible funding in youth development, and this was a long costly and difficult thing to do. It also has benefited from a rapid increase in its population. But Qatar has always over achieved in Asia relative to size, and has always done fairly well at youth levels. They finished 2nd in the youth world cup in the 80s but generally regularly qualifies to that competition, they also won the Asian games (functionally an U23 competition) in 2003.

Even with the recent developments it's worth noting past qatari teams have arguably been stronger. In the 90s they came within one game of qualifying for the world cup. Which would have been a phenomenal achievement.

I think with Qatar we need to separate narratives that are largely exaggerated (like this one, but also say the idea 60k workers have died, that women have no part in active social life) from those that are very much real (avoidable deaths, inhuman workers conditions which could borderline be considered a form of slavery, women defacto treated as male property in the eyes of the law) because without that separation you end up feeding into the narrative that Qatar is being victimised.

 

[LSUY]

This is the first World Cup where I've reached the day of England's first game and not once heard Three Lions, World in Motion, etc. in the build up. Even the supermarkets don't seem to be advertising lots of offers for the tournament. Qatar and Fifa have killed the vibe.

 

[dontcallme]

This is the first World Cup where I've reached the day of England's first game and not once heard Three Lions, World in Motion, etc. in the build up. Even the supermarkets don't seem to be advertising lots of offers for the tournament. Qatar and Fifa have killed the vibe.

Yep, the excitement around the tournament just isn’t there.

Still, looking forward to the game today. I have a week off so will watch a fair amount of the games.

 

[parj]

I reckon every Indian/Sri Lankan or Pakistani born in England was good enough to play for the country of their parents of grandparents they would over England

Maybe England should pick them quicker like England crickets team did with Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid. I believe they are T20 world champions and both have ranked top 10 in the world for their individual positions so clearly good enough for any team.

 

[Yiddo100]

View attachment 119268

Considering the capacity is only 60,000 and there was a lot of empty seats, they’ve done well to get to that number

 

[spursfan1991]

The gooner twat is spot on(no pun intended)

 

[scat1620]

Woke up 30 mins ago due to the combination of a heavy day out in London on Saturday and an ill-advised late night yesterday, and so agreed with my boss to take an unscheduled day of holiday today. Probably the only person in the country who is having a last minute flake day and WON'T be watching the football today.

 

[easley91]

This is the first World Cup where I've reached the day of England's first game and not once heard Three Lions, World in Motion, etc. in the build up. Even the supermarkets don't seem to be advertising lots of offers for the tournament. Qatar and Fifa have killed the vibe.

They're more focused on Christmas I think.