The weird reality football fans face at the World Cup beyond the lack of booze: From eerily empty streets to $14 coffees and constant document checks - BELINDA CLEARY reveals everything you need to know about Qatar
There are a few things fans looking to travel to the new tourist destination in the Persian Gulf need to know before kick-off - and the rules of the western world don't apply. Belinda Cleary (left) writes from Doha, revealing how laws that may appear ridiculous in the US, Australia or the UK are deeply rooted in the Qatari culture, under the threat of swift and severe punishments. But locals are desperate to make the best impression on the world in the hopes of building a sustainable tourist market and help guarantee their future riches
Karim Benzema has been ruled out of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after tearing a muscle in his left thigh, the French Football Federation has confirmed.
The Ballon d'Or winner, 34, was forced to leave defending champions France's training session early after suffering the injury in training on Saturday.
"Karim Benzema is out of the World Cup," the French football federation (FFF) said.
"After hurting the quadriceps on his left thigh the Real Madrid striker is forced to give up on taking part in the World Cup."
'Why is he drawing circles?' Rishi Sunak is mocked after posting 'cringe-worthy' video of him putting up World Cup wallchart on his office wall with caption 'do us proud'
The Prime Minister is seen opening a red box before circling key dates with a black marker - including those of England and Wales games. With an admiring look on his face, Mr Sunak then sticks the poster on the back of his office door. The video finishes with a simple message to the players: 'Good luck England and Wales.' The two countries have been drawn in the same group and will play each other on November 29.
The mountain of World Cup beer going to waste after Qatari royals' booze ban: Thousands of cans of Budweiser are piled up in warehouse after rulers ordered last-minute U-turn on selling alcohol at stadiums
The beverage giant had been announced as one of the sponsors for the tournament, and had been granted a monopoly to sell beer at the grounds, but it is now only able to sell its alcohol-free version of beer there. Furious football fans started demanding refunds from World Cup bosses when the decision was made on Friday, understood to be following pressure from the Qatari royal family. It has left Budweiser facing the prospect of large amounts of stock now going to waste.
The World Cup Wally..with hair! FIFA boss Gianni Infantino is spotted at family gathering with head of hair after his bizarre rant claiming to know what it's like to be gay, African or disabled - because he was ginger
FIFA boss Gianni Infantino has been pictured at a family gathering with hair after his bizarre rant yesterday in which he claimed to know how it felt to be discriminated against as he was 'ginger'.
Comedian Joe Lycett has appeared to shred £10,000 of his own money in a protest against David Beckham's role as an ambassador for the Qatar World Cup.
Lycett livestreamed himself destroying the cash on Sunday after the footballer did not respond to his ultimatum to drop the job in support of LGBT people.
Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries was among those to criticise Lycett, and called the move a publicity stunt.
The stunt, which took place on the same day the controversial World Cup begins, has attracted a mixed reaction, with some suggesting Lycett should have instead donated the money to a charitable cause.
Hours before the livestream, Nadine Dorries tweeted: "Shredding £10k will earn Joe Lycett far more than it will cost him and is in effect a paid-for publicity stunt which has worked."
She added that "no-one will think any worse of him now if he changes his mind at the last minute and donates it to a homeless shelter in time for Christmas".
Martyn Butler, one of the founders of HIV charity The Terrence Higgins Trust, replied to Lycett's original announcement with a picture of the charity's branded donation buckets.
"Well done Joe," he wrote. "However, may I point you in the direction of a perfectly brilliant fully automated unused blackmail money shredder device."
Others defended Lycett, arguing that he had succeeded in gaining more than £10,000 worth of publicity for the LGBT cause.
"I don't understand how so many people don't get the economics of this," tweeted one user. "If Joe had taken out massive billboards to plug his message, few would've considered it a waste of money, and it would've cost more."
The Birmingham-born comic shared a video of the stunt on Twitter, captioning it "a platform for progress".
In the clip, he can be seen placing wads of what appeared to be cash into an industrial shredder while wearing a rainbow tulle outfit, but it was not clear whether the banknotes were genuine.
Lycett set the former England footballer a deadline of midday on 20 November to take action after it was reported Beckham had signed a £10m deal with the Fifa World Cup hosts.
The comedian said he would donate £10,000 of his own money to LGBT charities if Mr Beckham ended the sponsorship deal before the tournament started.
If he did not, Lycett said he would livestream himself shredding the money along with Beckham's "status as gay icon".
After Lycett first announced his plans, Beckham's management declined to comment.
Prior to the stunt, Lycett had shared a video message directed at Beckham in which he commended the footballer for always talking about "the power of football as a force for good", but told viewers that Qatar was "one of the worst places in the world to be gay".
Qatar has been thrust into the spotlight since it was announced as the host nation for the competition 12 years ago, with critics citing a string of human rights abuses.
Some LGBT fans have boycotted the cup over Qatar's treatment of gay people, as homosexuality is illegal in the country and is punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Lycett has not responded to the BBC's request for comment.
The World Cup Wally..with hair! FIFA boss Gianni Infantino is spotted at family gathering with head of hair after his bizarre rant claiming to know what it's like to be gay, African or disabled - because he was ginger
FIFA boss Gianni Infantino has been pictured at a family gathering with hair after his bizarre rant yesterday in which he claimed to know how it felt to be discriminated against as he was 'ginger'.
Wetherspoons to show the World Cup in its pubs for first time - but there's a catch
The pub chain announced that most of its 850 pubs across the country will screen the tournament which kicked off this afternoon as Ecuador beat Qatar 2-0. However, the matches will be shown with subtitles rather than sound at the pubs, which are known for being sound free.
Comments
There are a few things fans looking to travel to the new tourist destination in the Persian Gulf need to know before kick-off - and the rules of the western world don't apply. Belinda Cleary (left) writes from Doha, revealing how laws that may appear ridiculous in the US, Australia or the UK are deeply rooted in the Qatari culture, under the threat of swift and severe punishments. But locals are desperate to make the best impression on the world in the hopes of building a sustainable tourist market and help guarantee their future riches
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fifa-world-cup/article-11437203/Weird-reality-football-fans-face-arrive-World-Cup-Qatar.html
The Ballon d'Or winner, 34, was forced to leave defending champions France's training session early after suffering the injury in training on Saturday.
"Karim Benzema is out of the World Cup," the French football federation (FFF) said.
"After hurting the quadriceps on his left thigh the Real Madrid striker is forced to give up on taking part in the World Cup."
https://video.dailymail.co.uk/preview/mol/2022/11/20/2525691681789005301/636x382_MP4_2525691681789005301.mp4
The Prime Minister is seen opening a red box before circling key dates with a black marker - including those of England and Wales games. With an admiring look on his face, Mr Sunak then sticks the poster on the back of his office door. The video finishes with a simple message to the players: 'Good luck England and Wales.' The two countries have been drawn in the same group and will play each other on November 29.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11449957/Rishi-Sunak-mocked-posting-cringe-worthy-video-putting-World-Cup-wallchart.html
The beverage giant had been announced as one of the sponsors for the tournament, and had been granted a monopoly to sell beer at the grounds, but it is now only able to sell its alcohol-free version of beer there. Furious football fans started demanding refunds from World Cup bosses when the decision was made on Friday, understood to be following pressure from the Qatari royal family. It has left Budweiser facing the prospect of large amounts of stock now going to waste.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11449267/Thousands-cans-Budweiser-piled-warehouse-minute-U-turn-selling-alcohol.html
FIFA boss Gianni Infantino has been pictured at a family gathering with hair after his bizarre rant yesterday in which he claimed to know how it felt to be discriminated against as he was 'ginger'.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11449609/FIFA-boss-Gianni-Infantino-pictured-hair-rant-bullying-ginger.html
Lycett livestreamed himself destroying the cash on Sunday after the footballer did not respond to his ultimatum to drop the job in support of LGBT people.
Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries was among those to criticise Lycett, and called the move a publicity stunt.
The stunt, which took place on the same day the controversial World Cup begins, has attracted a mixed reaction, with some suggesting Lycett should have instead donated the money to a charitable cause.
Hours before the livestream, Nadine Dorries tweeted: "Shredding £10k will earn Joe Lycett far more than it will cost him and is in effect a paid-for publicity stunt which has worked."
She added that "no-one will think any worse of him now if he changes his mind at the last minute and donates it to a homeless shelter in time for Christmas".
Martyn Butler, one of the founders of HIV charity The Terrence Higgins Trust, replied to Lycett's original announcement with a picture of the charity's branded donation buckets.
"Well done Joe," he wrote. "However, may I point you in the direction of a perfectly brilliant fully automated unused blackmail money shredder device."
Others defended Lycett, arguing that he had succeeded in gaining more than £10,000 worth of publicity for the LGBT cause.
"I don't understand how so many people don't get the economics of this," tweeted one user. "If Joe had taken out massive billboards to plug his message, few would've considered it a waste of money, and it would've cost more."
The Birmingham-born comic shared a video of the stunt on Twitter, captioning it "a platform for progress".
In the clip, he can be seen placing wads of what appeared to be cash into an industrial shredder while wearing a rainbow tulle outfit, but it was not clear whether the banknotes were genuine.
Lycett set the former England footballer a deadline of midday on 20 November to take action after it was reported Beckham had signed a £10m deal with the Fifa World Cup hosts.
The comedian said he would donate £10,000 of his own money to LGBT charities if Mr Beckham ended the sponsorship deal before the tournament started.
If he did not, Lycett said he would livestream himself shredding the money along with Beckham's "status as gay icon".
After Lycett first announced his plans, Beckham's management declined to comment.
Prior to the stunt, Lycett had shared a video message directed at Beckham in which he commended the footballer for always talking about "the power of football as a force for good", but told viewers that Qatar was "one of the worst places in the world to be gay".
Qatar has been thrust into the spotlight since it was announced as the host nation for the competition 12 years ago, with critics citing a string of human rights abuses.
Some LGBT fans have boycotted the cup over Qatar's treatment of gay people, as homosexuality is illegal in the country and is punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Lycett has not responded to the BBC's request for comment.
The pub chain announced that most of its 850 pubs across the country will screen the tournament which kicked off this afternoon as Ecuador beat Qatar 2-0. However, the matches will be shown with subtitles rather than sound at the pubs, which are known for being sound free.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/other/wetherspoons-to-show-the-world-cup-in-its-pubs-for-first-time-but-there-s-a-catch/ar-AA14kYTb?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=08e5e07e9d294040801297cffa4fc9a9