January 17 – Human Rights Watch has spotlighted “a legacy of widespread migrant labor abuses” in Qatar following the 2022 World Cup and “widespread abuses under the kafala system on PIF-funded projects” in Saudi Arabia, the host of the 2034 World Cup.
In its annual report, the rights organisation drew attention again to labour rights in the Gulf.
“As seen in the Human Rights Watch 2025 World Report, both Saudi Arabia and Qatar are nations that rely on a large migrant labor workforce,” Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch told Insideworldfootball.
“Both have been awarded football’s flagship event, the World Cup, by FIFA, without proper human rights due diligence. Both Qatar and Saudi Arabia have the kafala labor sponsorship system in place, leading to inadequate protections for migrant workers, including risks of forced labor, with no ability for workers for migrant workers to form unions, stage strikes, or protest dangerous working conditions.”
In December, FIFA awarded the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia following a bidding process that fast-tracked the candidacy of the Arab Kingdom. Other eligible nations were given little to no chance to apply and FIFA’s own evaluation rated Saudi Arabia’s bid the ‘best-ever’ with a score of 4.2.
The bid evaluation glossed over the country’s human rights record after an assessment of Saudi Arabia’s human rights policy for the tournament by law firm Clifford Chance. The report received a ferocious backlash from human rights groups.
The 2025 World Report of Human Rights Watch notes: “Migrant workers represent 42 percent of the country’s population. Yet despite their indispensable contributions, they face widespread labor abuses across employment sectors and geographic regions, and Saudi authorities are systematically failing to protect them from and remedy these abuses. The Building and Wood Workers’ International Union (BWI) filed a complaint at the International Labour Organization (ILO) against the Saudi Arabian Government regarding the exploitative living and working conditions among Saudi-based migrant workers ahead of the December decision by FIFA to grant Saudi Arabia hosting rights for the 2034 FIFA World Cup.”
In 2034, the Middle East will welcome the global finals for a second time after the 2022 edition in Qatar, which ranked as one of the most controversial sporting events in modern history because of the plight of migrant workers.
In November, FIFA announced a $50 million dollar Qatar legacy fund that focused on social programmes, including partnerships with UN bodies, but failed to address compensation for migrant workers, a measure its own sub-committee for human rights and social responsibility had proposed.
Human Rights Watch’s World Report was unequivocal about the legacy of the Qatar World Cup. The report reads: “Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup left a legacy of widespread migrant labor abuses, including thousands of unexplained deaths, rampant wage theft, and exorbitant recruitment fees. Qatari authorities and FIFA have failed to compensate abused workers who made the tournament possible. Migrant workers also faced new forms of exploitation after the tournament ended and are at risk of government backtracking on existing reforms.”
Qatar and FIFA have always said the kafala system has been abolished. In 2020, the Qatari government introduced reforms, but feeble enforcement on the ground has meant those reforms often remain theoretical.
The 2025 World Report explains: “Abusive elements of the kafala system remain intact. Workers still struggle to change jobs easily as in practice they are required to obtain signed letters from their original employer approving their resignation. Workers are unable to change jobs even when their employers fail to pay them.
“Qatar risks backtracking on some of the reforms, exemplified by Qatar’s advisory Shura Council’s 2024 proposal to adopt measures that would require migrant workers to obtain their employer’s permission before being allowed to leave the country. In 2020, Qatar extended the reform removing the requirement to obtain an exit permit to leave the country to include domestic workers.”
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1737156768labto1737156768ofdlr1737156768owedi1737156768sni@i1737156768tnuk.1737156768ardni1737156768mas1737156768