Bayern Munich defender, Leon Goretzka has urged the German Football Association to send a clear message against Saudi Arabia playing host to the 2034 World Cup.
FIFA recently confirmed that Saudi Arabia would hold the tournament, after stating the country was the only bidder for the tournament. Their only rivals Australia, announced previously that they would not bid for the hosting rights.
Speaking ahead of Germany’s upcoming friendlies with Turkey and Austria, Goretzka hit out at Qatar being awarded last year’s World Cup, and said that the ‘mistake has not been corrected’ with Saudi Arabia now set to host the tournament.
Asked if the German FA needs to make a clear signal against the awarding of the tournament to Saudi Arabia, he said: ‘I definitely see it that way, that still stands, the mistake was in the awarding (of the 2022 tournament to Qatar) and in the criteria that played a role.
‘It has obviously not been corrected, and that’s definitely not good.’
FIFA still needs to rubber-stamp Saudi Arabia as the host, a decision that is expected to be made late next year.
German players famously covered their mouths ahead of their World Cup clash with Japan last year, in protests of FIFA’s decision to ban an LGBTQ armband.
Their show of defiance in the Khalifa Stadium in Doha came after the world football governing body threatened sanctions against teams and their captains if they went ahead with their plan to wear the ‘OneLove’ armband, which had been viewed as a symbolic protest against laws in Qatar, where homosexuality is illegal.
Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 World Cup drew criticism because of its stance on same-sex relationships, its human rights record, and its treatment of migrant workers.
