The globe's largest sporting event kicks off Sunday in Qatar as 32 national teams compete to lift the World Cup trophy, amid numerous questions about the country's selection to host the tournament and human rights allegations. Michael Hershman, president of consulting for Fairfax Group and co-founder of the anti-corruption organization Transparency International, joined Cheddar News to discuss the allegations as fans begin to arrive.

The globe's largest sporting event kicks off Sunday in Qatar as 32 national teams compete to lift the World Cup trophy, amid numerous questions about the country's selection to host the tournament and human rights allegations.&nbsp;Michael Hershman, president of consulting for Fairfax Group and co-founder of the anti-corruption organization Transparency International, joined Cheddar News to discuss the allegations as fans begin to arrive.

Mixed International Reaction to a World Cup in Qatar

The 2022 World Cup kicks off Sunday. And Qatar. And the international response to the event has been mixed amid allegations of human rights abuses involving migrant workers and women, plus recent scandals involving FIFA International Soccer's governing body. So our next guest has worked extensively with FIFA and other organizations to address these alleged shortfalls and ensure that the event will promote a sense of unity rather than division. I'm joined now by Michael Hershman, president of the consulting from the Fairfax group and co founder of anti corruption organization, transparency International Michael, it's so good to have you on the show, especially ahead of this big event kicking off on sunday. I know you also served on on FIFA's independent governance committee. So talk to me about the oversight of these games and what fans can expect if they are planning to travel to Qatar. Well, let me say that I'm very excited. I will be going to the games leaving uh, tomorrow. Actually, it's um, we're expecting, I guess, 1.5 million visitors and um, probably well over a billion viewers to the games. I think that Qatar is ready. They've spent an enormous amount of money built some amazing stadiums and transportation systems. They're very hospitable country. And I know there have been controversies surrounding these games since they were awarded, uh, more than 10 years ago. But look, the important thing is to make the fans have a good experience now, uh, to see the players on the field doing what they do best and then perhaps later on we can reflect after the games, hopefully successful games about the controversies that had taken place in the past. Yeah, well, I know in a recent op ed that you wrote for the boston herald, you said quote, with results from the government of Qatar and urging from FIFA, many alleged human rights shortcomings have been addressed End quote. What were some examples of FIFA implementing change in Qatar? Well, sport does have can have a very positive effect in helping change policies, helping change cultures. And in fact, because of their uh hosting the World Cup, Qatar has taken steps to help ensure the health and welfare of migrant workers. In fact, in 2019, they asked the international labor organization to come in and oversee the their policies, relative that change policies, I should say, relative to migrant migrant workers. They also have when compared to some other Middle Eastern countries, a much more progressive outlook on women in the work, women's rights and human rights as well. So what checks and balances would you say are in place to ensure better transparency and accountability of World Cup organizers and Qatari government influence. Well, first, very good question. Uh when we established the Independent governance committee of FIFA during the height of the scandal, we came up with literally dozens of recommendations, many of which were incorporated in FIFA to ensure that the wrongdoing that occurred doesn't occur again, that raw, I'm doing by the way, would be on on selection of of host countries, not only by the way that particular selection, but selection of host countries for decades before the selection of Russia and Qatar, both of them were selected in 2010. Uh, so there was a lot of power concentrated in the executive in FIFA and in the board of directors which they called the executive committee. That power has been diffused somewhat and greatest. The selection process, for example, for host countries now involves all the federations and confederations, not just the top of the hierarchy within FIFA. Oh, I know, migrant workers and their families. Michael, calling for compensation for some of these alleged abuses that took place before the reforms were implemented with support from Human rights Watch. And so are there any discussions happening in FIFA or Qatar about possible aid for these affected families? There are discussions, but there's been some misleading information about the number of deaths and injuries that can be attributable to the World Cup um, event, the construction of the sites, the construction of, of transportation systems. But Qatar is known for its uh, benevolence, if you will. It's known for its charitable work and contributions. And I would hope that Qatar would very, very seriously consider compensation to those who may have been uh, harmed by their, their work relative to the World Cup. So, um, Michael, I would just like to end on this note. What would you say to fans who might be hesitant to support the World Cup this year, whether in person or even from their couch or living room as they tuned in from around the globe. Look, I think that the fans, I include myself in this are looking forward to supporting their teams. I think they're looking forward to supporting the star players that are on their teams. And I don't think that that many of them are, are troubling themselves at this point with controversy. Let me say this. I don't care what country you choose. Um you're not going to have a perfect environment for a set of games like the World Cup. The next set of games will be played in the United States, Canada and Mexico, we can look at the United States and we could say today, well, what about the immigration problems they have in the United States. We can look at Mexico today and say, what about the cartel issues they have. So if you're looking for the perfect site for a World Cup, you might have to choose a different planet to hold it on. I think you're right, Michael, we'll leave it at that. Hopefully it can bring people together. Right. I think we all need that, especially around the holidays and uniquely this year instead of in the summer around thanksgiving due to the desert conditions. So Michael Hershman, former FIFA adviser and president of the consultant from the Fairfax group, Michael, Thank you