"Tim Sparv: Staying silent is 'not an option' with soccer heading in 'dangerous' direction after Qatar 2022," 13 Nov 2022

Since hanging up his boots, Sparv visited Qatar with FIFPRO – the worldwide representative organization for professional footballers – and says he saw the negative impact the tournament is having on migrant workers.

“In a perfect world, we could trust our governing bodies to make good decisions for us,” he added.

“But that’s not the case and that’s why we need these critical outside voices to have an opinion and to make sure that our sport is heading in a good direction.”

Sparv says he also wants Qatar to be a catalyst for governing bodies to put players at the forefront of decision making...

He is aware of the changes FIFA has implemented in recent years, such as the creation of the FIFA Human Rights Advisory Board… and is interested to see what impact this will have going forward.

“I think there’s been a shift in our understanding of where sport is heading. I hope that we’ll have clearer rules of how we let certain countries bid for World Cups,” he said.

“I think there should be a set of criteria that should be met before they’re allowed to bid. It’s a little bit too late to demand something from Qatar when they’ve already been awarded it.

“I think the legacy is that every one of us; supporters, coaches, players, federations, everyone involved in sports, takes a stand to say this can’t happen again.”