Post-World Cup, Qatar is pressing ahead with labor reforms but concerns for migrant workers remain

By JAMES ROBSON
AP Soccer Writer

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — The enduring image of the 2022 World Cup was Lionel Messi holding aloft soccer’s biggest prize in Qatar’s spectacular Lusail Stadium. Messi had realized his ultimate ambition by leading Argentina to glory in perhaps the most thrilling final in the tournament’s history. The drama was played out in front of around 90,000 fans inside the stadium and millions watching around the globe. Despite concern over the treatment of migrant workers, it could hardly have turned out better for Qatar and soccer’s world governing body FIFA after so much criticism over the decision to stage a first World Cup in the Middle East. To some it could have been viewed as an example of the effectiveness of so-called sportswashing.