As the idea of a World Cup boycott continues to be hotly debated in France, the last few days have notably seen a war of words between the French Football Federation and Amnesty International, the latter having long been critical of the governing body’s stance with regard to human rights in Qatar.

The NGO denounced the FFF’s “silence” on the issue...

The FFF responded by calling it a campaign of “stigmatisation“, and claimed that the World Cup had allowed for progress to be made in the Gulf state, which certain NGOs including Amnesty had recognised – “Taking part does not mean turning a blind eye and supporting”. […] [The FFF] has simply made the choice to act firmly but calmly and respectfully rather than making it a publicity campaign.”

Amnesty then responded in a somewhat tongue-in-cheek statement “congratulating” the FFF for “finally” breaking its silence on the issue, and has called on the governing body to take action before the World Cup, notably to its support for a compensation fund for workers whose rights have been violated since 2010, while also asking the FFF for greater transparency...