A few days after it started, the Soccer World Cup in Qatar 2021 has already given us enough surprises. In less than a week we have seen unexpected defeats, heroic victories and painful defeats. But the surprises have not only come in sports.
The large number of empty seats in the stands during the initial games, for example, drew the attention of several expert commentators.
The same happened with the complaints that were made about hundreds of “fake” fans ” who received money to fill the streets of Doha, the capital of Qatar, in the days prior to the start of the tournament.
While the BBC was investigating these allegations, it discovered one more unusual detail: fans of the teams from different countries received free air tickets and accommodation after they posted positive statements about the tournament on social media or in to share, and “like” certain types of posts.
“Fake” fans
As the first match of the tournament approached, footage of hundreds of of supporters, from different countries, waving national flags and chanting slogans in the streets of Doha.
But the photos raised questions on social media: some questioned why so many fans who seemed to have facial features from the Middle East or South Asia were supporting teams from all over the planet.
One of the comments asked: “Do you get paid to be fans of other countries or what?”.
During our reporting on the ground, the BBC spoke to a Qatari resident of Indian descent, Aaron Fernandes.
Fernandes says that these types of comments reflect a general misunderstanding about the region. With so many immigrants making Qatar their home, he said, why wouldn’t it be filled with soccer fans supporting teams from different countries?
“We have many fans from India who love the game and I am glad that during this FIFA World Cup how much Indians love football has come to light,” he said.
He said that despite the love of cricket that characterizes South Asia, the region also had a high proportion of football fans.
And since countries like India have never qualified for a World Cup, many of they choose to support other nations and travel abroad to watch them play.
The Argentine national team has a large following in Qatar.
Aaron is also a member of two clubs of fans: the Fifa Fan Movement and the Qa leadership scheme tar Fan. The two groups were created and are managed by FIFA and the World Cup Organizing Committee 976.
When asked if he had to sign any kind of agreement as part of the leadership scheme, Aaron gave an inconclusive answer: “Of course, there are responsibilities, but it’s about sport. They’ve been doing this for years. It’s nothing special.”
Free flights and hotels
Some fans were offered air tickets, accommodation and match tickets
Despite Aaron’s ambiguous response, the BBC has learned that many members of the leadership program have been asked to sign contracts while at the same time receiving incentives from the tournament organisers.
According to documents to which the BBC had access – in addition to the testimony of various organizing officials – many foreign supporters were offeredwere free flights to Qatar and accommodation as part of an initiative to “shape the experience of the followers”.
In exchange, they were asked to sign a code of conduct in which they agreed to “incorporate, when appropriate, content from the SC [Supreme Committee] in their p publications”, in addition to “liking” and sharing third-party material.
The Supreme Committee is the organizer of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
While the agreement tells fans that they are not expected to be “speakers for Qatar”, they are asked not to “disparage the Supreme Committee of Qatar” or the “World Cup Qatar 2022”.
Pierre Cornez, a press officer for the Belgian Football Association, says that supporters also received “a free ticket for the first game and for the opening ceremony”.
He assures that the offer was not only made to the Belgians but to fans from “all the countries that are playing in this World Cup”.
It also asserts that not all fans who participated in the scheme ended up signing the agreement.
A copy of the document that the favored fans were made to sign.
FIFA has been repeatedly criticized for awarding the World Cup to Qatar, given the country’s negative record on issues such as workers’ rights, the rights of LGTBI communities and freedom of expression.
That is why some independent and grassroots fan clubs believe that Qatar’s Fan Leader scheme is simply an attempt to improve the image of the tournament.
Fan Supporters Europe board member Martha Gens says she never I had heard before that a major tournament had used a scheme like this.
“This is not a fan movement, it is a fan fraud”, Martha says. “It’s weird, it’s cloudy and it’s not right.”
However, the Supreme Committee defended the scheme, claiming: “This initiative has helped the Committee to understand the needs and concerns of the supporters of 92 different countries.
“You are under no obligation to post or share content. All fans who visit Qatar as our guests do so voluntarily and free of charge.”
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