Soccer and labor exploitation, the lessons of Qatar 2022 for the 2026 World Cup

The level of workplace accident rate of Qatar 2022, where between 400 and 500 migrant workers died working in preparation for the tournament. Hiring schemes that take advantage of the migrant labor force, human rights violations, and a weak complaint and inspection system left them most vulnerable.

It is not early to start doing something and avoid that in the Soccer World Cup 2026 the same thing happens, point out various organizations. Above all, because the working conditions that exist at least in Mexico and the United States are not too far from the labor market of that Arab country, they warn.

The competition will take place four years from now in cities across Canada, the United States and Mexico, it will be the largest in FIFA history and the first with a human rights code that must be fulfilled. Although it seems that there is a long way to go, electoral processes and changes of administrations are going through that could hinder or reverse progress.

Two sectors that will be “spearheads in job creation, before and during the World Cup” in Mexico are the construction and the provision of services in hotels, restaurants, airports and transportation, says Hugo Mendoza, director of the Center for Reflection and Labor Action (Cereal).

At the same time, they will be “the most vulnerable for workers, due to temporary contracts and due to ignorance of their rights,” he adds. In Mexico, of the more than 1.5 million construction support workers, 1.4 million work informallyaccording to the National Occupation and Employment Survey (ENOE).

The deaths of workers and workers in Qatar are also a warning sign for the next Cup, says Evy Peña, director of Campaigns at the Migrant Rights Center (CDM). “North America and Qatar are not the same, but the parallels are undeniable: we have the same labor migration scheme, worrying gender-based violence, restrictions on the press, and discrimination against the LGBTIQ+ population.”

The labor issue is critical to prevent history from repeating itself in this part of the world, which must be addressed transnationally and “with a central focus on the democracy and trade union freedom”, he points out.

However, “the context in Mexico is unique and very different from that in the United States and Canada, which is why we ask that the planning of this event, starting now, take into account the particularity of our country.”

Work schedules almost the same

Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary General of the Qatar Legacy and Organization Supreme Committee 2022, admitted that “among 400 and 500 migrant workers” They died in various projects of the World Cup. Later, the agency tried to qualify the information and in a statement it assured that only 40 workers died in the works under its charge.

The schemes of recruitment of migrants that they used in that country are almost identical to two of those that operate in the United States. Evy Peña, who along with her CDM colleagues, has denounced the bad practices of the US H-2A and H-2B programs, explains:

“Las temporary work visas they are tied to an employer and cannot change jobs, many times they withhold their documents, they have very limited benefits under the law and there is a great imbalance of power between the worker and the employer”.

Migrants paid millions of dollars for recruiting fees to work in Qatar and hundreds of them died in the development of the infrastructure. “Now, their families in their countries of origin cannot access the FIFA complaint mechanism because it is inoperative.”

In Mexico, that already happens with people who want to take advantage of the H-2A temporary visa program for agricultural work in the United States, or for unskilled jobs with the H-2B visa. They pay thousands of pesos to recruiters for offers that sometimes turn out to be false.

But Mexico is not only a country of migratory origin, it is also a transit and destination country. “We have to make sure that we have the protections for migrants,” highlights the migration specialist.

For the 2026 World Cup, it must be taken into account that it will take place in three countries. “It is a great opportunity to make sure that the mechanisms work, taking into account the labor mobility conditions,” says Evy Peña.

Women, access to water and tourism

There are other equally important aspects, or rather, transversal to labor migration. In Mexico City, one of the venues for the 2026 World Cup, the Red de Mujeres Sindicalistas (RMS) found three gender issues.

One of them is the prevailing discrimination and workplace violenceAnother is the safety and hygiene measures in the construction around the Azteca Stadium that are not taking women workers into account and the lack of compliance with labor regulations, according to Rosario Ortíz, collegiate coordinator of the RMS.

“The work prior to and during the event requires to be monitored and inspected by the authority,” says Hugo Mendoza, director of Cereal. It cannot be assumed that FIFA and companies will comply with the standards of human rights protectionwhen in Mexico we have had a great delay in the implementation of these, he explains.

In Monterrey, Nuevo León, another of the venues, the water shortage For a part of the population it has been a serious problem and it could be “in the integration of the migrant labor force,” warns Evy Peña.

In that city, in the country’s capital and in Guadalajara, Jalisco, the third headquarters in Mexico, there is the basic infrastructure for the parties. However, adjustments and extensions will be made. In some cases hotels will be built and personnel will be required to operate them.

But also in the economy triggered by sports jousting there are other activities. For example, the production of uniforms, souvenirs, clothing, food and raw materials, for all of this, says the director of CDM Campaigns. “And a lot of it will also happen in other cities that will receive tourists.”

It will be the biggest World Cup “and we have to make sure that we are mitigating all the violations of labor human rights pre-existing and that may arise from the event, and that at the end they continue to be fulfilled”.