In less than two weeks, the World Cup will begin in Qatar. The closer the sporting mega-event gets, the more severe the criticism of the host country becomes – especially with regard to the human rights situation.
Qatar’s criticism is fueled by a shocking statement by the desert state’s official World Cup ambassador. In the ZDF documentary “Geheimsache Qatar” Khalid Salman described homosexuality as “mental damage”.
In view of such statements, it is not surprising that there are repeated calls for a boycott of the World Cup, if only by not turning on the television. But what do football fans in Germany think about it?
Clear answer: They would appreciate it if public viewing organizers and bars in Germany would boycott the broadcast.
In a survey conducted by the opinion research institute Civey for FOCUS online, 65 percent expressed their views accordingly. Only 19 percent felt it was wrong not to broadcast the games live in public places.
Younger people in particular are in favor of keeping the screens black. 74 percent of 30 to 39-year-olds would support a boycott, while in the 65 generation only 60 percent would welcome a boycott.
87 percent of Greens supporters think a TV boycott is right. AfD voters, on the other hand, are divided. Here, 51 percent are positive about a boycott. Acceptance among FDP voters is even lower. Only 46 percent would support a failure of the transmission.
The fact that so many people are behind a boycott of the live broadcast seems not only to be due to the host, but also to the season.
Because the answer to the question “Can you muster the same enthusiasm for a football World Cup that takes place in winter as for a summer World Cup?” was unequivocal.
At 65 percent, the vast majority cannot be enthusiastic about a winter world championship. Only 21 percent said they were looking forward to the games like they were in the summer. Here, too, there are differences between the generations.
While 73 percent of 30 to 39-year-olds are rather negative about the Winter World Cup, the figure for people over 65 is only 62 percent.
(Note: The results of this survey are calculated for the following population: people who will watch matches of the 2022 World Cup on TV or who do not (yet) know it (German citizens of legal age)).
