Sport is leading at the Dutch football association KNVB. At the same time, the organization wants to take its “social and human responsibility” regarding the controversial Football World Cup in 2034 in Saudi Arabia. That is “a fragile balance,” KNVB federation chairman Frank Paauw said on Monday evening in the first public explanation from the federation board since the final allocation of the tournament to the conservative oil state. “It’s difficult to balance.”
Paauw said this during the half-yearly association meeting of the KNVB in Zeist. Last Wednesday, the 2034 World Cup was awarded to Saudi Arabia. There were no competing candidates, world football association FIFA had decided to ratify the designation by acclamation (with approving applause). The Dutch federation directors clapped “subduedly”, the KNVB said at the time. With the exception of the critical Norwegian federation president, there was no protest among the 211 associations affiliated with FIFA.
Dutch federation directors have so far made little noise about the allocation, which is considered controversial due to Saudi Arabia’s poor human rights situation. Former police boss Paauw, who started as union chairman in September, spoke out for the first time on Monday about the discomfort surrounding the country. It lasted six minutes, he didn’t mention the word human rights once.
Of course, we cannot close our eyes to the fact that it is a sensitive World Cup
“Of course we cannot close our eyes to the fact that it is a sensitive World Cup,” said Paauw. He emphasized that “lessons” have been learned from the approach of Qatar, the organizer of the 2022 World Cup. Improving human rights and the treatment of migrant workers was a spearhead of the KNVB at the time, sometimes openly confronting the oil state. The association has now come to the conclusion that it is better to seek “connection” through diplomacy.
According to Paauw, when approaching Saudi Arabia, the association is opting for “a course of action” of “putting on the agenda and addressing everything that happens there”, without making it specific what he is referring to. “We certainly want to put the lead we have in the West on the agenda towards Saudi Arabia.” Paauw did not say what advantage he means and how the KNVB top wants to do that.
Also read
The 2034 World Cup will go to Saudi Arabia, how did the football world get to this point?
Visit to Riyadh
At the end of November, Paauw made a two-day working visit to the Saudi capital Riyadh with Gijs de Jong, secretary general of the KNVB. They spoke with representatives of the football association, the national human rights commission, the Dutch ambassador and Dutch companies active in the country.
“What we found there is that the whole of the Netherlands does business with Saudi Arabia,” Paauw said on Monday. “Trade relations are at the highest level. The EU and the [Europese voetbalbond] UEFA maintains ties with the country. Other sporting events are also held there.”
The KNVB follows the government’s line here. In addition to economic relations, there are diplomatic and political relations. At the beginning of this year, then Prime Minister Mark Rutte was received at the palace in Riyadh by the all-powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Several ministers visited the country in recent years. A new visit is planned: a trade mission will be organized for Dutch companies and knowledge institutions to Saudi Arabia at the beginning of February, led by Minister Reinette Klever (Foreign Trade, PVV).
The Dutch government actively encourages Dutch companies to enter the Saudi market with financial and diplomatic support, says Floor Beuming, Saudi Arabia coordinator at Amnesty International. In this way, the government is sending the signal that doing business in Saudi Arabia is permitted and desirable, the human rights organization stated in a report last year. “Regardless of the major human rights risks,” says Beuming. “This apparently has the same effect on the KNVB.”
Young population
Federal chairman Paauw wants to make “a separation” between sporting ambitions and political interests, where the KNVB previously did not do so around Qatar. “We come to play football,” he said. “We are not an association that engages in politics.”
Paauw’s difficult balancing act is evident from what he said immediately afterwards. “At the same time, we do take responsibility for the things that concern us, because we are also royal.” He did not say which ‘things’ he was referring to.
Also read
KNVB directors clap ‘subduedly’ when the 2034 World Cup is awarded to Saudi Arabia
“This so-called separation between sport and politics is often used to avoid sensitive discussions,” says Arnout Geeraert, assistant professor of international sports governance at Utrecht University. “Every sports director knows that the two are inextricably linked.” Saudi Arabia itself is a prime example of this: sport has played an important role in the country’s international profile in recent years.
“I don’t want to seem naive,” Paauw said in Zeist, “but I do think that Saudi Arabia will take major steps in the future.” Major economic reforms are being implemented under the government program ‘Vision 2030’.
In that light, what made Paauw “positive” during his visit to the country is the very young population: 63 percent are younger than 30, according to the bid book for the World Cup. He was told there that the reforms promised must also take place without the World Cup. “I am not an advocate, I indicate what the aftertaste of our visit was. They will have to make that move.”
Researcher Geeraert believes that the president of the federation does not clearly identify the problems in Saudi Arabia in the field of labor and human rights. “Political nonsense.” On the one hand, according to him, the KNVB must keep the home front happy – such as human rights organizations – and on the other hand he cannot kick FIFA and Saudi Arabia “too hard in the shins”.
Saudi Arabia has great influence on the sports world, including through a sponsorship deal between state oil company Aramco and the world football association. “FIFA has done everything it can to give the World Cup to Saudi Arabia and to cover up human rights problems,” says Geeraert. He thinks it is bad that there is no criticism of this from the unions. “As a national association you are the ‘owner’ of FIFA, it is your duty to play watchdog.”