10 European football associations react to Fifa's letter about the World Cup 2022's "emphasis on football"
Ten European football organisations, including those of England and Wales, have responded to Fifa's request for countries competing in the Qatar World Cup to "now focus on the football" by stating that "human rights are universal and apply everywhere."
Following a contentious build-up to the competition, which begins on November 20, the world governing body wrote to all 32 teams.
The host nation of Qatar has come under fire for its views on same-sex couples, record on human rights, and treatment of migrant labor.
Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and LGBT+ activists in England and Wales all criticized the Fifa letter.
The Uefa Working Group on Human Rights and Labour Rights said in a joint statement that it would "continue to press" Fifa for clarification on unresolved concerns involving migrant workers despite appreciating the "substantial progress" achieved by Qatar.
In the statement, it was stated that "we acknowledge and welcome, as we have in the past, that significant progress has been made by Qatar, particularly with regard to the rights of migrant workers, with the impact of legislative changes demonstrated in the recent reports of the International Labour Organization."
"We appreciate the pledges made by the Qatari government and Fifa to ensure the safety, security, and inclusion of all World Cup fans, including LGBTQ+ supporters. We also acknowledge the problems and difficulties that every nation has, and we concur with Fifa that diversity is an asset.
But accepting variety and tolerance also involves standing up for human rights. The concept of human rights is universal and applies to everyone.
Gianni Infantino, the president of Fifa, and Fatma Samoura, the secretary general, wrote a letter in which they recommended that football not be "dragged" into ideological or political "battles" or used to "dispense moral lessons."
Some athletes have organized peaceful protests, while Harry Kane of England and nine other captains of European teams will don armbands that read "One Love." to encourage inclusiveness and diversity.
Hummel, the team's uniform supplier, has stated that it "does not wish to be visible" in a competition that it claims "has cost thousands of lives," while Australia's team has released a video urging Qatar to repeal its laws against same-sex relationships. Denmark will wear "toned-down" shirts to protest Qatar.
The English Football Association (FA) has supported requests for compensation to be given for "any accident or death related to any building activity" for the World Cup.
The statement from the Uefa Working Group stated, "We will continue to support the momentum for positive, progressive reform and continue to press for a decisive result and update on the two important outstanding issues we have been discussing with Fifa for a long time.
"We will continue to encourage FIFA to deliver on its promises to provide tangible solutions on these issues, including the compensation fund for migrant workers and the idea of a migrant workers center to be established in Doha.
"We believe in football's capacity to further contribute positively and credibly to global growth and lasting change."
Germany's Bundesliga games on Saturday included banner-waving protests from the audience.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, minister of foreign affairs for Qatar, has called boycott calls "peddled by a very small number of people, in 10 countries at most, who are not at all representative of the rest of the world," calling criticism of his country's hosting of the World Cup "hypocritical."
And he said that people "cannot tolerate a little country from the Middle East" hosting the World Cup in an interview with Sky on Sunday.
He asserted that preaching from a distance was not the answer.