Qatar Archives - uSports.org https://usports.org/tag/qatar/ Sports News & Views Fri, 16 Sep 2022 19:05:15 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.3 Qatar Officials Issue Alcohol Warning For Incoming World Cup Fans https://usports.org/qatar-officials-issue-alcohol-warning-for-incoming-world-cup-fans/ https://usports.org/qatar-officials-issue-alcohol-warning-for-incoming-world-cup-fans/#respond Fri, 16 Sep 2022 19:05:15 +0000 https://usports.org/?p=199639 BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA - OCTOBER 08: Lautaro Martinez of Argentina controls the ball during a match between Argentina and Ecuador as part of South American Qualifiers for Qatar 2022 at Estadio Alberto J. Armando on October 08, 2020 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The head of Qatar’s safety and security committee issued a warning for World Cup fans attempting to sneak alcohol into the country. Drinking in public is illegal in many parts of Qatar and more measures will soon be implemented specifically for soccer fans. Though alcohol will be available for purchase at hotels, as well as […]

The post Qatar Officials Issue Alcohol Warning For Incoming World Cup Fans appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA - OCTOBER 08: Lautaro Martinez of Argentina controls the ball during a match between Argentina and Ecuador as part of South American Qualifiers for Qatar 2022 at Estadio Alberto J. Armando on October 08, 2020 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The head of Qatar’s safety and security committee issued a warning for World Cup fans attempting to sneak alcohol into the country. Drinking in public is illegal in many parts of Qatar and more measures will soon be implemented specifically for soccer fans.

Though alcohol will be available for purchase at hotels, as well as in stadiums through World Cup sponsor Budweiser, all outside alcohol will be strictly prohibited. This is a radical change from past World Cups and also clashes with soccer fan cultures in many other parts of the world. At the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Moscow proprietors were reportedly running out of beer as fans partied before, during and after games.

At a press conference in Doha, Col. Jassim Abdulrahim Al Sayed told reporters that the country was preparing for people to break existing laws in the country.

“There are specific measures,” Al Sayed said. “I think alcohol will not be allowed through the airport and suitcases.

Anyone guilty of public drinking in Qatar under normal circumstances has to pay fines worth hundreds of dollars, and with World Cup fans expecting a typical atmosphere, officials are trying to find a way to protect pre-existing laws while hosting foreign fans. Encouraging fans to enjoy themselves in designated areas seems to be the primary solution.

“There is a misconception about alcohol sales in stadiums and designated zones,” Chief Executive Nasser Al Khater said. “We are working like any other World Cup, like usual.

Al Khater also said that the country was looking to make the event more welcoming for children and families by keeping drinking in certain areas. These restrictions will have an impact on the way many fans enjoy the World Cup, as the country is only providing a semblance of the usual environment, as most alcohol will not be served until 6:30 p.m. regardless of earlier game times.

The post Qatar Officials Issue Alcohol Warning For Incoming World Cup Fans appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
https://usports.org/qatar-officials-issue-alcohol-warning-for-incoming-world-cup-fans/feed/ 0 2020 Getty Images BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA - OCTOBER 08: Lautaro Martinez of Argentina controls the ball during a match between Argentina and Ecuador as part of South American Qualifiers for Qatar 2022 at Estadio Alberto J. Armando on October 08, 2020 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Copa America 2019 Begins This Weekend With Brazil As Favorites, Argentina Follows : Start Time, Odds, Predictions https://usports.org/copa-america-2019-begins-this-weekend-with-brazil-as-favorites-argentina-follows-start-time-odds-predictions/ https://usports.org/copa-america-2019-begins-this-weekend-with-brazil-as-favorites-argentina-follows-start-time-odds-predictions/#respond Wed, 12 Jun 2019 19:47:31 +0000 http://usports.org/?p=175075 2018 World Cup Qualifiers: Brazil beat Uruguay 4-1, Argentina beat Chile 1-0
The 2019 summer Copa America tournament of South American teams kicks off Friday with hosts Brazil taking on Bolivia. The group stage will last until June 24th, with the knockout stages finding a winner in the final on July 7. Chile have won the tournament the past two times and will be looking for a […]

The post Copa America 2019 Begins This Weekend With Brazil As Favorites, Argentina Follows : Start Time, Odds, Predictions appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
2018 World Cup Qualifiers: Brazil beat Uruguay 4-1, Argentina beat Chile 1-0

The 2019 summer Copa America tournament of South American teams kicks off Friday with hosts Brazil taking on Bolivia. The group stage will last until June 24th, with the knockout stages finding a winner in the final on July 7.

Chile have won the tournament the past two times and will be looking for a hat trick of trophies in the space of six years. South American teams aren’t the only teams in the tournament, however, as for the first time in the history of the tournament, two teams from Asia — Japan and Qatar — were invited to participate in the tournament.

Per Oddschecker, Brazil are favorites to hoist the cup with 6-5 odds, followed by Argentina (15-4) and Uruguay (15-2). Brazil are without Neymar for the remainder of the tournament, as he suffered a right ankle injury in a friendly against Qatar on June 5.

The Brazil Football Confederation released a statement on Neymar’s status.

“After suffering a sprain in his right ankle during Wednesday’s game against Qatar, Neymar was evaluated and subjected to complementary imaging tests that confirmed ligament rupture in the ankle,” the statement read, according to ESPN. “Due to the seriousness of the injury, Neymar will not have the physical conditions and sufficient recovery time to participate in the Copa America.” Neymar also faces rape charges.

Brazil remains favorites, as Argentina has a track record of performing poorly in major international tournaments, as Lionel Messi has famously failed to win any trophies with his nation. This tournament seems to be following the same suit.

SPORTS FIGURES WHO DIED IN 2019- IN MEMORIAM SLIDESHOW

“We go there with the same excitement and hope as always but the reality is we are in a period of transition and are not candidates,” Messi said, according to the Independent. Despite the team having one of the best strike forces in the world, the remainder of the squad can’t seem to match their ability. Argentina hasn’t won a Copa America since 1993.

Argentina open their tournament run against Colombia, a solid side led by playmaker James Rodriguez. Oddly enough, Japan or Qatar have a chance of winning the Copa America before Messi could. The Copa America will be broadcasted in Spanish on Telemundo, or it can be streamed with ESPN+, with Brazil opening against Bolivia on Friday at 8:30 p.m. EST.

 

The post Copa America 2019 Begins This Weekend With Brazil As Favorites, Argentina Follows : Start Time, Odds, Predictions appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
https://usports.org/copa-america-2019-begins-this-weekend-with-brazil-as-favorites-argentina-follows-start-time-odds-predictions/feed/ 0 uSports.org EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - JUNE 26: Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina takes the ball as Jean Beausejour #15 of Chile defends during the Copa America Centenario Championship match at MetLife Stadium on June 26, 2016 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.Chile defeated Argentina 0-0 with the 4-2 win in the shootout. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Ice Cube Claims Steve Bannon Was Target Of Bribery Scheme By Qataris Who Invested In BIG3 Basketball League https://usports.org/ice-cube-claims-steve-bannon-was-target-of-bribery-scheme-by-qataris-who-invested-in-big3-basketball-league/ https://usports.org/ice-cube-claims-steve-bannon-was-target-of-bribery-scheme-by-qataris-who-invested-in-big3-basketball-league/#respond Tue, 15 May 2018 20:54:03 +0000 http://usports.org/?p=52922 BIG3 Basketball Tournament At Barclays Center June 25 tickets
Rapper Ice Cube asserted this week that a Qatari man invested in his BIG3 basketball league as a way to target President Donald Trump’s former strategist Steve Bannon. Ice Cube Sues Qatari Investors Who Tried To Target Steve Bannon The 48-year-old actor and former NWA member and Jeff Kwatinetz, the co-CEO of BIG3, claim the Qatari man — reportedly named Ahmed al Rumaihi […]

The post Ice Cube Claims Steve Bannon Was Target Of Bribery Scheme By Qataris Who Invested In BIG3 Basketball League appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
BIG3 Basketball Tournament At Barclays Center June 25 tickets

Rapper Ice Cube asserted this week that a Qatari man invested in his BIG3 basketball league as a way to target President Donald Trump’s former strategist Steve Bannon.

Ice Cube Sues Qatari Investors Who Tried To Target Steve Bannon

The 48-year-old actor and former NWA member and Jeff Kwatinetz, the co-CEO of BIG3, claim the Qatari man — reportedly named Ahmed al Rumaihi — tried to gain access to Bannon while he served as Trump’s chief strategist in 2017. The pair say the man was working with Qatar’s government.

Kwatinetz added that after Trump had fired Bannon in August 2017 and that the latter had resigned as executive chairman of far-right news website Breitbart, Qataris wanted to schedule a meeting with Bannon to offer to “underwrite all of his political efforts in return for his support.”

A $1.2 billion lawsuit filed by Ice Cube — whose real name is O’Shea Jackson — and his business partner last month against Qatari investors alleges that Al-Rumaihi bragged about bribing and striking deals with other American politicians including Michael Flynn, Trump’s first National Security Adviser who pleaded guilty in special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russian collusion.

Jackson and Kwatinetz claim the Qatari reneged on promises to invest large sums of money in their basketball league. The suit says Al-Rumaihi and another Qatari investor paid only $7.5 million of the $20.5 million they had vowed to invest in the league.

Rumaihi also reportedly asked about the Trump administration’s position on a blockade of Qatar, which was instituted by other Arab nations in June 2017 following allegations that the country’s government supported terrorism.

The basketball businessmen also accuse the Qataris of spending large sums of money on gambling and other inappropriate activities, including on foreign trips for BIG3 employees as a way to assert their influence in the league.

Porn star Stormy Daniels’ lawyer Michael Avenatti questioned in a tweet on Sunday why Al-Rumaihi allegedly met with Flynn and Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen — who paid Daniels $130,000 in hush money — in Trump Tower in December 2016.

 

The post Ice Cube Claims Steve Bannon Was Target Of Bribery Scheme By Qataris Who Invested In BIG3 Basketball League appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
https://usports.org/ice-cube-claims-steve-bannon-was-target-of-bribery-scheme-by-qataris-who-invested-in-big3-basketball-league/feed/ 0 uSports.org NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 11: (L-R) Jeff Kwatinetz, Rashard Lewis, Allen Iverson, Ice Cube, Kenyon Martin, and Roger Mason Jr. attend a press conference announcing the launch of the BIG3, a new, professional 3-on-3 basketball league, on January 11, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for BIG3)
FIFA Releases ‘Garcia Report’ On 2018, 2022 World Cup Bidding [See Full Text] https://usports.org/fifa-releases-garcia-report-2018-2022-world-cup-bidding-see-full-text/ https://usports.org/fifa-releases-garcia-report-2018-2022-world-cup-bidding-see-full-text/#respond Wed, 28 Jun 2017 16:51:59 +0000 http://usports.org/?p=39768 FIFA Announces Expansion to 48 Countries for 2026 World Cup
FIFA on Tuesday announced it had published on its website a link to a report compiled by former United States attorney Michael J. Garcia that detailed the bidding process for the World Cups in 2018 and 2022. FIFA published the Report After A German Tabloid Leaked It on Monday Here are Garcia’s complete reports on the […]

The post FIFA Releases ‘Garcia Report’ On 2018, 2022 World Cup Bidding [See Full Text] appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
FIFA Announces Expansion to 48 Countries for 2026 World Cup

FIFA on Tuesday announced it had published on its website a link to a report compiled by former United States attorney Michael J. Garcia that detailed the bidding process for the World Cups in 2018 and 2022.

FIFA published the Report After A German Tabloid Leaked It on Monday

Here are Garcia’s complete reports on the U.S. and Russia World Cup bids:

FIFA Garcia Report, USA report by silkdiesel on Scribd

FIFA Garcia Report, Russia report by silkdiesel on Scribd


Garcia helped assemble the 430-page dossier while he worked as the chief ethics investigator for world soccer’s governing body in 2014. The document — which was kept hidden by FIFA’s ethics committee for more than two years — contained the findings of a several-months-long investigation into the process to select host countries for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, which will be held in Russia and Qatar, respectively.

On Monday, German publication Bild said it obtained a copy of the report and threatened to gradually unveil its scandalous contents.

FIFA claimed the report was “illegally leaked” to the German tabloid and released a statement Tuesday to address its decision to publish the document:

“For the sake of transparency, FIFA welcomes the news that this report has now been finally published,” the statement read. The Association added that the decision was made “to avoid the dissemination of any misleading information.”

Russia and Qatar were voted the next two World Cup hosts in December 2010, and Garcia discovered evidence of corruption in his probe.

Garcia — who is now an associate judge at the Court of Appeals for the state of the New York — interviewed 75 witnesses over 18 months as part of his investigation, but ultimately did not find any concrete evidence that the Russian and Qatari committees had bribed FIFA officials in order to secure their respective countries as hosts for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

In the end, FIFA did not find any incriminating evidence that would have led the governing body to either relocate the tournaments or reopen the bidding for them.

BBC sports editor Dan Roan cited a source when he claimed in a tweet that Garcia’s report does not provide any evidence that either of the two World Cup host countries were selected illegally:

Here are the main results of the investigation detailed in the report:

First, Garcia stated in his report that although he discovered no proof that Qatar’s official bidding committee had illegally obtained votes for a World Cup hosting gig, he was extremely concerned about the close ties between the country’s government and its bid committee, and about the inappropriate behavior of consultants seeking to further the bid.

Then, the former attorney revealed Russian president Vladimir V. Putin met with six FIFA voters in the months prior to the December 2010 hosting vote. Putin was then prime minister of Russia.

Finally, Garcia explained in detail how FIFA executive committee members and other notable officials dismissed him by either ignoring or verbally attacking him when he asked questions, and generally failed to cooperate with his probe. Nevertheless, Garcia held limited control of the investigation, given that he did not have subpoena power.

FIFA’s former chief ethics investigator did reveal, however, a series of direct or indirect favors carried out by several countries’ committees in order to obtain votes: a soccer field constructed in a voter’s country, trans-Atlantic flights on private jets, and — most stunningly — a $2 million payment deposited into the account of a FIFA voter’s 10-year-old daughter.

The probe also revealed — through summaries of FIFA meetings — that the organization’s executive committee had not discussed the issue of the scorching heat in Qatar. This problem has prompted several human rights organizations to criticize soccer’s governing body for exploiting workers in the tiny Middle Eastern nation who are involved in the construction of the stadiums for the 2022 World Cup, which will be held in the summer (June and July) as always.

Around 1.7 million migrant laborers are estimated to be participating in the construction of the venues in Qatar. Dutch Trade Union Confederation FNV issued a legal challenge on behalf of a Bangladeshi migrant worker named Nadim Sharaful Alam in October 2016, forcing FIFA to be held directly accountable in Swiss courts for improper working conditions and human rights violations, among other reasons.

One member of FIFA’s ruling executive committee has already pleaded guilty in a separate, ongoing corruption probe into world soccer’s governing body.

Before Garcia officially released the report, however, German Hans-Joachim Eckert — FIFA’s former chief ethics judge — disclosed a 42-page summary of the document that said there was insufficient evidence to conclude that there was corruption in the voting process. Eckert added that there was thus no need to reopen the bidding process for the World Cups.

FIFA’s top executives, including then-president Sepp Blatter, rapidly deemed the case closed.

One month later — in December 2014 — Garcia resigned after losing an appeal related to the case. The former attorney then alleged that Eckert’s summary included “numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of the facts and conclusions.”

FIFA then stated the report could be published once all investigations into individuals had been finished.

After Bild leaked the report on Monday, FIFA claimed in a press release Tuesday morning that the governing body’s current president, Gianni Infantino, had requested the report’s publication “on numerous occasions.”

“Despite these regular requests,” FIFA said in the statement, “it is worth noting that the former chairpersons of the Ethics Committee, Cornel Borbély and Hans-Joachim Eckert, had always refused to publish it.”

However, Eckert and Bobely — who had replaced Garcia as FIFA’s chief ethics investigator — denied in their own statement later Tuesday that Infantino had ever demanded this.

“To this day,” they said, “Mr. Infantino has never contacted us and asked for a publication.”

Eckert — who cited privacy concerns as a reason for not publishing the report — and Bobely were both terminated this year. At that time, they implied that their ongoing ethics probes into several top FIFA officials had been hindered by their removal.

In 2015, dozens of FIFA officials were indicted on corruption-related charges in the U.S. Blatter was forced to resign and was banned for six years following an internal ethics investigation.

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – OCTOBER 14: FIFA President Gianni Infantino poses for a photo after part II of the FIFA Council Meeting 2016 at the FIFA headquarters on October 14, 2016 in Zurich, Switzerland. (Photo by Philipp Schmidli/Getty Images)

The post FIFA Releases ‘Garcia Report’ On 2018, 2022 World Cup Bidding [See Full Text] appeared first on uSports.org.

]]>
https://usports.org/fifa-releases-garcia-report-2018-2022-world-cup-bidding-see-full-text/feed/ 0 uSports.org ZURICH, SWITZERLAND - OCTOBER 14: FIFA President Gianni Infantino poses for a photo after part II of the FIFA Council Meeting 2016 at the FIFA headquarters on October 14, 2016 in Zurich, Switzerland. (Photo by Philipp Schmidli/Getty Images)