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Following his controversial performance officiating Argentina’s quarterfinal win over the Netherlands on Friday, Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz was reportedly removed from the 2022 World Cup and will not work any of the tournament’s remaining four games. The Spanish referee, who works in Spain’s La Liga, has already left Qatar, according to Spanish outlet COPE. The VAR (video assistant replay) referees were not punished, however, and will be given the options to work in the remaining matches. Both teams were enraged with Lahoz throughout the match, which saw Argentina blow a late 2-0 lead before rallying to win in penalties. Lahoz...

Drew Gilpin Faust Office of the President Harvard University Massachusetts Hall Cambridge, MA 02138 USA Dear Dr. Faust: This letter is being sent to you on behalf of the Qatar Awareness Campaign Coalition. The purpose is to inform you and the public of the activities of Qatar. Harvard University is assisting the Qatar Foundation to establish a law school in Doha, in order to “revitalize legal education in the Middle East, and represent Islamic and Arabic legal traditions in the global dialogue on legal and governance issues.” These traditions include Sharia law. Harvard University is arguably the greatest institution of...

'European democracy is under attack': Roberta Metsola addresses EU Parliament corruption scandal By Euronews • Updated: 13/12/2022 - 11:31 Roberta Metsola address the European Parliament plenary in Strasbourg, France. Roberta Metsola address the European Parliament plenary in Strasbourg, France. - Copyright Philippe BUISSIN/ European Union 2022 - Source : EP Roberta Metsola, the President of the European Parliament, warned on Monday that there would be "no impunity" for those found guilty of corruption as she addressed what is perhaps the gravest graft scandal to hit the hemicycle in recent years. "Make no mistake, the European Parliament, dear colleague, is under...

YES, I know, I know. It’s happening at the wrong time of year in the wrong kind of place and we’ll doubtless end up with the wrong result. But once it gets going, all that will be forgotten.

The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has achieved the unity of the Arab people, and proved that it is their meeting place," Qatar Press Center president Saad Mohamed al-Rumaihi said. He was speaking on the sidelines of a panel discussion on the 'Western campaigns against Qatar and the Arab countries, organised by Qatar Press Center (QPC) in co-operation with Qatar News Agency (QNA) on Sunday. "Today, the entire Arab world, east and west, north and south, stands behind the Moroccan national team. They all support the Lions of the Atlantic and hope that the Moroccan national team will reach the...

A Qatari photographer has died while covering the World Cup — the second journalist to lose his life at the global event following influential US soccer writer Grant Wahl’s death. Khalid al-Misslam, a photojournalist for local sports outlet Al Kass TV, died on Saturday, the Doha-based Gulf Times reported. “Al-Misslam, a Qatari, died suddenly while covering the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. We believe in Allah’s mercy and forgiveness for him, and send our deepest condolences to his family,” the Gulf Times reported on Twitter.

Wahl was covering his eighth World Cup. He wrote Monday that he had visited a hospital while in Qatar. “My body finally broke down on me. Three weeks of little sleep, high stress and lots of work can do that to you,” Wahl wrote. “What had been a cold over the last 10 days turned into something more severe on the night of the USA-Netherlands game, and I could feel my upper chest take on a new level of pressure and discomfort. I didn’t have Covid (I test regularly here), but I went into the medical clinic at the main...

There's been an epic upset at the World Cup in Qatar. Croatia beat tournament favorite and #1 world ranked Brazil 1-1 (4-2) in a gut-wrenching penalty kick shootout. Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livaković, who blocked three shots in an earlier shootout with Japan, blocked the first kick, by Brazilian forward Rodrygo. From there, Croatia was successful on four straight shots. When veteran defender Marquinhos stepped up for Brazil's fourth attempt, he needed to convert or the match was over. His shot hit the left post, and the Croatian team erupted in joy. Meanwhile, Brazilian fans clad in the team's iconic yellow...

Raheem Sterling will fly back to England after missing the 3-0 World Cup round-of-16 win over Senegal, the Football Association (FA) confirmed on Sunday, with sources telling ESPN his house was the target of an armed robbery. The 27-year-old held talks with manager Gareth Southgate on the morning of the game after learning his Surrey home was broken into on Saturday evening. - Dawson: England World Cup starts now with France clash - Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) Southgate confirmed after England's victory that Sterling has been released and will travel to London, with no return date set,...

U.S. — After the men's national team was dealt a crushing 1-3 loss by the Netherlands, the United States expressed deep relief to no longer have to go on pretending to like soccer. "Hoo-boy, I didn't think I could keep that up another day," said local man Aaron Bronson. "Thank God for the Dutch!" After twelve grueling days of trying to get excited about a ball mostly being passed backward, celebrations broke out across America as its World Cup run came to a close. "I know we only have to fake being soccer fans every four years, but it's been...

FULL TIME: The United States national team’s 2022 World Cup, a campaign begun with high hopes, marred by a scary injury to its star and then undone by three simple goals on a cool night outside of Qatar’s capital, is over after a 3-1 loss to the Netherlands.

Controversy about Qatar hosting football's World Cup has mostly focused on LGBT rights in the country and around same-sex relationships being criminalised. Transgender Qataris can be detained for "violating public morality", which requires no trial or official charge. BBC News has spoken to two trans Qataris about their lives. "I am very afraid, but I just want people to know that we do exist," Shahd says about her decision to speak out about life as a transgender woman. Like the other person in this article, we have changed Shahd's name to protect her. We have been messaging her over an...

Hansi Flick said German football will "head into a different direction, and very soon" after the four-time world champions suffered a second successive World Cup group stage elimination, described as an "absolute catastrophe" by forward Thomas Muller. Despite a 4-2 win against Costa Rica at Al Bayt Stadium, Japan's 2-1 victory against Spain in Doha ended Germany's hopes of qualifying from Group E. A 2-1 defeat against Japan in their opening game at Qatar 2022 ultimately proved costly for Germany, who are due to host Euro 2024 in just over 18 months. And with that tournament looming large, Flick, who...

The U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team defeated the Iranian team on Tuesday in a must-win game. Now the American team moves on the playing The Netherlands on Saturday. There was a little extra sweetness in celebrating the U.S. victory this year because of the political protests going on in Iran now. Iranians in support of the protesters celebrated the U.S. victory in Iran. One woman spoke on the condition of remaining anonymous from her home in southern Iran. “Mahoora” said, “It’s not just some people in Iran, it is the majority of people in Iran that want the U.S. to...

A Qatari official involved in the organisation of the country's World Cup has put the number of worker deaths related to the tournament "between 400 and 500" for the first time, a number drastically higher than any other previously offered by Doha. The comment by Hassan Al-Thawadi, the secretary general of Qatar's Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, appeared to be an off-the-cuff remark during an interview with British journalist Piers Morgan. The comment threatened to renew criticism by human rights groups over the toll of hosting the Middle East's first World Cup given the migrant workers who built more...

Shaheen stretched out on the sand and closed his eyes, but there was little time to rest for the camel. World Cup fans coming in droves to the desert outside Doha were ready for their perfect Instagram moment: riding a camel on the rolling dunes. As Qatar welcomes more than a million fans for the monthlong World Cup, even its camels are working overtime. Visitors in numbers the tiny emirate has never before seen are rushing to finish a bucket list of Gulf tourist experiences between games: ride on a camel’s back, take pictures with falcons and wander through the...

Okay, before you go nuts, hear me out. Soccer just isn't our sport. We suck at it. The USMNT is going nowhere, and they're just a bunch of virtue signalers anyway. The Iranian team almost literally is playing for their lives. They have been protesting their government by not singing for the anthem, and there are reports their families are being threatened if they don't "behave". If they lose, there is a decent chance a few of them will just be disappeared. So lets say they beat the US. They will be national heroes. It will be very very difficult...

Arab soccer fans attending the World Cup games in Doha, Qatar assaulted an Egyptian journalist, believing him to be an Israeli. In footage of the attack which circulated on social media, Arab soccer fans can be seen haranguing and shouting at the reporter before attacking him and forcing him to flee. The reporter tried to explain to the fans that he is Egyptian, not Israeli, but the fans refused to believe him...

Exclusive: Construction firms allegedly paid ‘millions’ to buy and lease machinery from the Taliban for infrastructure, according to sources The Taliban made millions from the World Cup by providing construction equipment to build stadiums in Qatar, The Telegraph understands. Senior Taliban officials used lucrative salaries tied to peace talks to buy and then subcontract heavy machinery for tournament infrastructure over the past decade, a source from the Taliban's Doha office revealed.

Chinese TV has been cutting close-up shots of mask-free World Cup soccer fans to avoid angry comparisons with the strict “zero-COVID” clampdowns behind historic protests at home, according to reports. Earlier footage of soccer fans from around the world packing Qatar stadiums without face coverings drew outrage in the nation that remains alone in enforcing draconian lockdowns and forced testing for millions. “Is this the same world as ours?” one Weibo user asked alongside footage, as a viral open letter to Beijing’s National Health Commission asked if China was “on the same planet” as Qatar. Now, as that anger has...