Gerrard was ridiculed by his followers.
– It’s unbelievable to think that the 11-year journey towards home World Cup competitions may have already started for some of my junior players. The hard work begins now.
This is how to write on your Instagram account Steven Gerrard, who took over as coach of Al-Ettifaq of the Saudi Arabian League at the beginning of July. In his message, the British legend promotes the Middle Eastern country’s project to host the 2034 World Cup.
– Hosting the FIFA World Cup would help us achieve our dream of being a leading nation in the world of sports and would be a significant milestone in our country’s transformation, Saudi Arabian Sports Minister Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal declared.
Gerrard’s Followers were not thrilled with the publicity speech. In the answers, the man was asked, among other things, how much money he earned from becoming an advertiser for the project.
– It’s hard to watch when my childhood hero sells himself in this way. Depressing, one user quips.
Saudi Arabia’s human rights situation has been criticized for, among other things, the lack of freedom of speech, the legal system, refugee policy, women’s rights and the treatment of sexual minorities. In addition, the coalition led by the country has been accused of war crimes in the ongoing war in Yemen. When it comes to ratifying the UN Human Rights Convention, Saudi Arabia ranks at the tail end, with only the United States and Malaysia behind in the list.
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Last summer, Saudi Arabia used a lot of money to hire a lot of tough players to be the face of their league.
Like Gerrard, the biggest star in the local league Karim Benzema celebrated the news with enthusiastic expressions.
– Wow! Unbelievable news. The future is bright. Congratulations to all my friends and fans in Saudi Arabia for this big announcement. I know how much you love the game and what this would mean to you! Ittihad FC’s French forward wrote in his message to the X message service.
Also a former Manchester City star Riyad Mahrez glowed the Saudis’ World Cup project unhindered.
Mahrez represents Al-Ahli.
Saudi Arabia was originally supposed to apply for the Games with Greece and Egypt, but ended up going it alone.
Possible competitors to host the 2034 games are China, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, Australia and New Zealand, as well as the member countries of the Southeast Asian Football Confederation with their joint project.
Steven Gerrard received rude feedback from his followers. EPA/AOP