Initiators of "BoycottQatar" talk about the World Cup - and their motives

Created: 11/22/2022, 11:34 am

By: Thomas Copytz

An initiative pushed by the two authors Bernd M. Beyer and Dietrich Schulze-Marmeling wanted to prevent the World Cup in Qatar.

Nevertheless, she is successful.

Göttingen/Münster - BoycottQatar 2022 - the title of the initiative is clear.

It is also an appeal to fans and TV viewers worldwide at the start of the World Cup in Qatar.

Banners could be seen in German stadiums for weeks, as reported by hna.de.

We spoke to the two initiators, the authors and football friends Dietrich Schulze-Marmeling and Bernd M. Beyer from Göttingen, about the status of the World Cup and "BoycottQatar 2022".

FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar: Interview with the initiators of "BoycottQatar"

Hardly seen in live TV broadcasts: the protest in the Bundesliga stadiums against the World Cup in Qatar and the support for the “BoycottQatar 2022” initiative.

Here at the game between Borussia Mönchengladbach and Borussia Dortmund (4:2) on the last day before the World Cup.

© DPA

Your initiative "Boycott Qatar 2022" could not prevent the World Cup.

What did she do anyway?

Schulze-Marmeling:

BoycottQatar got off to a leisurely start – also because of the pandemic and the Ukraine war.

The fan scenes were also cautious and had reasons for this: they had their own issues in the clubs, such as 50+1, little interest in the national team and they had already finished with FIFA.

That changed in the summer, especially on the final days of the game.

In every stadium in Germany where professional football is played, we have seen a protest against the World Cup in Qatar - often with our banner, often with the fans' own choreos.

We wished for that, but didn't expect it in this form.

We distributed 200,000 stickers and gave out 500 banners, distributed thousands of brochures and stocked umpteen events.

However, we are also overstretched in terms of personnel.

Are you looking forward to this World Cup – sporty?

Schulze-Marmeling:

I don't even know who the German group opponents are.

That says it all.

I've written about many world championships in the past and also published a compendium in our publishing house Die Werkstatt.

For many years, I have dealt intensively with nations, teams and tactics.

This is now a World Cup I know incredibly little about.

I'm not interested in this World Cup.

And I hear that from a lot of people, whether colleagues or friends.

In addition to the terrible events surrounding awarding contracts, construction and human rights violations, this may also be due to the timing of winter.

Beyer:

For us as activists, the sporting aspect is of course overshadowed by the political discussions.

But I would feel the same way if I wasn't involved in BoycottQatar 2022.

In my circle of friends, nobody is looking forward to this World Cup – there is an indecisiveness.

Nobody wants this World Cup like this, now and in this country.

Will you be watching World Cup games on TV?

Schulze-Marmeling:

I can hardly see any of our team's games because there are many events during the World Cup that I'm invited to.

Because organizers, including pubs, where games are usually shown, leave out the televisions and offer alternative programs.

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Beyer:

(laughs) My wife has already threatened that if I, as a co-organizer, should watch BoycottQuatar games, she will become a whistle-blower and make it public.

Are you asked what to do?

Schulze-Marmeling:

Yes, we are asked.

But we are not religious or football police.

What's important to me is that when you watch games, you should remain critical and not succumb to enthusiasm.

However, we would like as many people as possible not to see the tournament.

So that the ratings stay in the basement?

Schulze-Marmeling:

Yes, of course.

That might make the football bosses in FIFA and associations as well as the broadcasters think – possibly also sponsors.

ZDF and ARD recently reported critically.

Will it stay like this?

Schulze-Marmeling:

The reporting was indeed critical, especially the reports by Benjamin Best from WDR, but I don't think things will go on like this during the World Cup.

It seems as if the critical side is now being covered in advance in order to then be able to present the football product as usual.

Beyer:

I'm afraid that during the World Cup, the critical reports will only have an alibi function and will be relegated to secondary formats.

The game reports will be limited to sports and try to cheer the mood.

We see that in the spots in which ARD and ZDF advertise their reporting.

The live broadcasts of the Bundesliga games on Sky and DAZN didn't show much of the protests either.

Schulze-Marmeling:

I had that impression too.

But the protest actions were really impressive, for example in Berlin and Dortmund.

You had to make an effort not to get these protests into the picture.

So it may be that there were stage directions not to show the banners or only to show them briefly.

What will be running during the World Cup as part of BoycottQatar?

Beyer:

There will be many events during the World Cup.

That's exactly what we wanted to achieve.

It's not always lectures and discussion events, but also football and fan tournaments.

Pubs show old films and games instead of World Cup football and organize quiz evenings.

The aim was not just to be passive, i.e. not to watch the World Cup, but to counteract it with your own culture that develops itself.

This has worked and inspires us.

It has become a movement that can survive.

They protested against the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.

What's different today?

Schulze-Marmeling:

The protest back then, "Football yes, torture no", was supported by churches, political organizations from the left camp, human rights organizations like Amnesty.

Today, the supporters are the organized, critical football fans who didn't exist back then.

What happens in clubs?

Beyer:

There were club membership decisions against the World Cup, such as Fortuna Düsseldorf, 1. FC Köln and Hertha BSC.

Whether the club management actively support this is another question.

Schulze-Marmeling:

Preussen Münster designed a special jersey "Black and green is colorful" and a program.

There were also funny actions, such as from KSV Hessen Kassel, who announced: We are not sending any national players to this tournament.

There are also auctions, the proceeds go to the relief fund for migrant workers in Qatar.

What needs to change in relation to the World Cup and FIFA?

Infantino has to go.

(tko)

Related topics:

How Lower Saxony and Bremen's politicians feel about the Qatar World Cup.

In Kassel, too, some hosts are boycotting the tournament in Qatar.

The "BoycottQatar 2022" initiators

Bernd M. Beyer

(72) from Göttingen and

(65) from Münster are among the top German sports and football authors.

Both won awards.

Beyer most recently for "71/72 - The Season of Dreamers".

Schulze-Marmeling for "FC Bayern and its Jews." Dietrich Schulze-Marmeling is a footballer and fan and writes about tactics, history and developments in (professional) football.

Both founded the Göttingen publishing house Die Werkstatt and the “BoycottQuatar 2022” initiative.

(tko)

Internet

: boycott-qatar.de back2bolt.de