Blasting the high number of foreign players on Qatar’s national handball team, FIFA’s president has warned the Gulf state that its athletic selection process would be closely watched ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
In a historic run, Qatar’s squad made it to the Men’s Handball World Championship finals for the first time last week before being defeated by France.
But despite its stellar performance, the team was heavily criticized by many for being comprised largely of foreign-born players from Europe.
In his latest editorial in FIFA Weekly, Blatter waded into the debate, saying the International Handball Federation (IHF) shouldn’t allow so many naturalized players to compete.
The official, who is campaigning for a fifth term as FIFA president in May, added that Qatar’s squad “contradict(ed) the spirit of a national team.”
He continued:
“The fact that sport builds social bridges and brings cultures together cannot be stressed often enough.
However, what happened at this year’s men’s world handball championship in Qatar stretched this notion to the point of absurdity.”
FIFA regulations
As host of the 2022 tournament, Qatar’s national team will automatically be allowed to compete, regardless of its international ranking (which is currently 92nd but climbing).
However, FIFA’s rules for allowing foreign-born players on a national team are considerably stricter than the IHF’s. According to Blatter, a player, his parents or grandparents have to born in the country he represents. Or, he must have lived in the country for at least five years after turning 18 years old.
Qatar is mindful of the rules, and has been working to cultivate homegrown talent in the four years since its been awarded FIFA hosting rights.
Last April for example, the Qatar Football Association (QFA) announced that it would be reducing the number of foreign players in the coming seasons.
The new focus would be on developing young local players, training more Qatari referees and coaches and reaching out to the community to bring in fans, QFA said at the time.
But analysts say youth development is difficult because Qatari players are not necessarily attracted to the contracts offered to them, and their families may not be supportive of them pursuing careers in sports.
Thoughts?
Why would you want to take any notice of this corrupt man, FIFA is morally bankrupt and he has destroyed the image of the game. Fifa awards the WC to Qatar and then starts to criticises their approach to other sports. What nonsense.
If Qatar wants to have a full team of non Qatar born footballers then so be it if it’s within the rules. It can’t be any worse than what Septic “bellend” Bladder and his cronies have done to fifa.
I don’t know which one of us has changed but I’m finding your comments to be reasonable over the past few months.
I’m fully expecting to see Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney, Christiano Ronaldo and Van Persie wearing Thobes and having a coffee down at Landmark Mall after having been naturalized in readiness for 2022…. ; )
And Bladder would not even blink as long as he was in there for his upteenth term as president for life.
And smoking ot course
This f@c£ing guy
dude, let’s cook?
Better call Soul first
Blatter criticises Qatar. Has his latest cheque not arrived on time?
He has bigger balls then i thought considering i thought they were firmly in the grip of Qatar…
Cheque bounced
Signatory out of town sir
This should be the tagline of Qatar!!
I have pity with the “fans”. They haven’t understood that it’s not about sports anymore. It’s a business. Nothing else. And in business every dirty trick is allowed.
The ramblings of a desperate old oligarch, fruitlessly grasping for credibility, in light of his imminent demise.
What a sad old tw@t!!
Maybe he is trying to posture himself for his election.Sports is business,and his looking for another term is all about business.One can critize some things in Qatar’s evolution, but how can one fault the development of sports in a Country whose population is small.You should not give on one end and take away on another.Bladder is bad for Football.Period.
Rules of IHF is clear. So why blame Qatar?
Ive lived in Qatar for the last 17 years and represented then in the F2 power boat series, with pride, the event they put on for the Handball WC was so well organised and really was world class, respect to Qatar firstly for putting on such a cracking event and they deserved a spot in the finals, Well done Qatar !!! Roll on 2022 !!
What a disgrace to sports world.. buying players for money.. if u dont have talent try to build it. Only knows to eat, $hit and drive.. loosers….
Players from other countries has been a normal occurrence in sports for years. New Zealanders play rugby in several other national team programs, Canadians play ice hockey in several other national team programs so why should handball or football be any different. Having a few exceptional players from other countries can help lift the game in emerging markets…
A few? How bout a whole team? LOL
Its not only the case with one or 2 players or teams… athletics or football or watever.. qatar buys stars from other nations.. thats actually pathetic..
It can’t be as pathetic as your language skills though.
Saleem the desert barbarian go eat $hit
What an angry gando!
HAHA
Calm down barbarian. Your era was 1200ad. This is 21st century.
Says the gando who loves rape.
This Barbarian is a Pimp who sells gals for money to do terror.
Smelly gando
Stinking barbarian saleem..
When was the last time you showered gando? And walking outside when it happened to rain does not count.
When was the last time you had some food other than $hit. barbarian saleem is a $hit eater.
LOL! Can you afford better food dirty gando?
Saleem barbarian.. come and eat your morning quota, its ready in my toilet.
You live in a toilet poor gando!
U lives in sewage tank and eats it.. stinking barbarian saleem. One thing u can be proud of. Ur tounge is better than toilet paper.
Sorry, I can understand English, not Gandolish. LOL
Cracks poor jokes and laughs himself. Typical barbarian $hit eater. Lol..
you will have a super lunch. I had eggs bread and milk for breakfast. Enjoy!
Don’t lie gando, you know those foods are out of your budget range!!! LOL
I know you will start begging shortly since oil prices r record low. Dont worry we have technology science and agriculture. You will get ur quota everyday, i assure u.. come on cheerup.
Dumb gando you left your country for a job, not me! LOL.
Dirty barbarian saleem dont know a $hit. Similar to how ur stupid country hires players as said in this news they hires talents as well since the idi0t citizens like u dont know how to do a job other than $hit eating. If this was not the case you dirty uncivilized fools would have wandering through the desert searching camel $hit and piss and u would be eating ur own $hit. Luckily now u can eat mine. So relax and think. Btw how was ur lunch? Super?
LMAO! Gando is very angry!
Barbarian saleem becoming silent. Seems growing some brain after hearing the lecture. Slowly slowly understanding he is good for nothing other than scavenging.
I just find it funny how a gando let’s bollywood influence his understanding of the world, but dirty gandos will be gandos.
Poor saleem the barbarian thinks his tiny $hitty country is the world and its flat and completely desert. Such a disgrace.. scumbag..
Blah blah blah… just stfu and go home stinky gando.
Dirty barbarian Saleem is fedup thinking about himself. Go and milk camel. Will let u know when dinner is ready.
No gando, you work for me remember? After you are done with the camel go clean the bathrooms. Actually don’t, a dirty gando will make the bathroom stink more!!! LOL
I work to fck ur wfe.. after eating u shud clean the plate urself..thats manners..
Yes gandos are known for raping, because no clean woman agrees to be with a gando! LMAO. Thanks for confirming what we already know.
Thanks 4 confirming ur wfe is dirty. And its bcoz u r impo. Poor barbarian good 4 nothing. Y cant u die urself rather than bcoming a burden to earth. A real real scumbag. $hit eater saleem.
Dude you are a gando who can’t spell, learn some English after cleaning the bathroom.
Saleem u r jus a Dirty arab barbarian or a paki. U know just to eat $hit. Come and clean my @ss with ur tounge. Good 4 nothing fellow. Scumbag..
Gandos like you sleep with rats and smell like sewers.
Stop hijacking the thread, guys. One more outburst like this on another story and you’re both banned.
I will $hit on you punk.
Another looser… saleem himself is a $hit..
Your English is $hit, lol! Go eat $hit birdbrains.
Your culture and language is real $hit. A typical middleeast barbarian. Dude its 21st century..grow ur brain. People like u just adds some weight to earth, no other use. U are a real ugly desert barbarian. Shame on u.
LOL! Dude learn some basic English before you lecture anyone about culture or language.
Lol.. see who is talking… its Saleem the desert barbarian.. you will be known in this name going forward.. in ur view english is a language to say $hit. Better educate urself to speak in a good language.
SALEEM.. THE DESERT BARBARIAN..who likes $hit for dinner.. enjoy…
Do you just type random letters on your keyboard and hope it produces meaningful sentences in English? LOL!!!
Mine is not a stupid arabic keyboard like urs..
Be careful, he’s indian. He might kill you with his smell.
Another goat and camel stinking middleeast barbarian. Uses perfumes as cover to hide the smell of camel $hit.
Maybe… You both need to find a room?
Somewhere else!
Your home will do, you offering?
I think I was succinct – somewhere else!
I accept your offer. See you in an hour.
My retort is under consideration – by DN!
There is no retort, you made an offer and I accepted. See you in a few minutes.
Go back to India M.F.
It will be ur M .. u headless chicken.. looser..
another deep thinker i see
you lingam worshiping filth, come and such my d**k. thats what you worthy off.
real clever
Haha.poor guy.dont watch much p0rn.get a life.loser.
“loosers” ?
Marco polo? Born for italian?
This continuous harassment of Qatar because of this WC does not seem to be innocent. I am suspecting some a**holes at the FIFA are trying to push Qatar to drop the event on its own rather than by a FIFA decision that might be ethically-questionable and financially ruinous.
Oh please, who’s trying to do the moral policing? This man has been shamelessly clinging on to power since I was still in my teens. And he has the audacity to put Qatar in line?
So every sports body doesn’t have the same rules. There’s diversity. If Qatar has made use of the loopholes to a ‘larger extent’ than others, including European countries crying foul now, why should they be blamed? They’re within the rules.
Half of the Qatar-bashers in here come from countries that are 10 to 100 times bigger than this place. Please wake up and understand that it’s not that Qatar don’t want an all-Qatari team. They’re more than willing to build one. But where’s the human resources? So if an ambitious country wants to do something in sport, and they follow the rules to get it done, what’s the big deal? It’s just a case of sour grapes for the haters.
Qatar are indeed trying to build up their base. ASPIRE Academy is helping a lot. Six to seven players in the AFC Asian Cup team are actual Qataris. So development is indeed happening, but people just gloss over it, because after all, Qatar is bad, right?
Give some credit to the country, mates. Monetarily, they lag far behind Saudi Arabia or the UAE. But are either of these countries (or any other in the GCC) putting the money where their mouths are? These guys are at least investing in sports. How many tournaments would’ve gone completely caput had the Qataris not stepped in? The FINA Swimming Short Course Worlds, the IHF Super Globe, FIVB Club Volleyball World Championship… examples are many. Give them a little credit, please.
The hate mails may now begin!
Blatter never said they broke the RULES of the game, just the SPIRIT. And it’s true. Maybe the US, or any other non cricket playing country, should just go buy a bunch of cricketeers and be world champs in that. It’s called building a foundation for the future. You take your lumps and come out with character for having striven to reach that point. But actually developing ANYTHING here is out of the question.
But how would they develop anything if at every turn, there are sceptics who say they cannot do anything?
And I would disagree with your statement ‘developing anything is out question’. In gymnastics, they’ve built up a mostly-Qatari team from scratch. They’re performing well at the younger levels. Give them a little time and they shall prove your sentiment wrong.
That’s great. It should be across the board then instead of trying to buy instant success which is not sustainable. The skeptics come from the fact that a guy named Christian is/was on the Nat’l Football Team. et al. And by “not developing anything” I mean from society to sports.
End of the day we must all realise that Qatar is a very young and developing country (Less than 100 YEARS) unlike most other countries it competes with. Every nation has to go through its natural evolution and build its character culture accordingly.
They are trying to expedite their growth and naturally drawing criticism for it but in time I am sure they will have their own to work with
There is more criticism about Sepp-tic Bladder than Qatar in these comments. What u on about?
In all sports there are rules about naturalisation in sport…fair enough. For me,the problem is the fact that citizenship offered in Qatar is withdrawn once the player can no longer “do his job”. At least that’s my understanding.
Look at this map from 2014 Brazil WC, it shows international connections of all players:
http://codehesive.com/wc-ancestry/
The difference being that these player’s ancesters, family, migrated to these countries and were developed within the country. Qatar purely buys players when they are of use.
I know that within the Australia case many of these family linkages were due to war and searching for a more prosperous place to call home.
I Would love to know how many of the past Qatari National football team mercenaries still have Qatari citizenship and have the full rights and benefits that non naturalised Qataris have.
None of them gets full Qatari rights. They will always be Non-Qataris.
The IHF and FIFA have ridiculous naturalization requirements. It is silly for Blatter to criticize a country for legally abiding by his guidelines.
Isn’t this the 77 year old guy being rumoured to have an affair with still-married-wife-with-2-kids Linda Barra ?
What’s the problem with “importing locals”? None. Would be better if they focused on club teams rather than national team but still…it’s a sporting event. Athletes get paid, fans get to see the Qatar jerseys on someone who can actually play a sport…everyone is happy. I’d rather have “white qataris” participate in sporting events than no qataris.
Another country that uses the foreign born players in its national team is East Timor. They went on to beat Mongolia on the first qualifying match for Russia 2018. These foreign players do not follow the FIFA ‘s criteria on 5 years residence in East Timor or have any ancestors from the country. The FFTL (East Timor’s FA) should be suspended for breaking the rules.