BBC under fire after not showing World Cup opening ceremony live on TV
The BBC's decision to not air the opening ceremony of the World Cup live during main coverage on Sunday has brought criticism from many sports fans.
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 opening ceremony was held at Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, Qatar, where African American movie star Morgan Freeman was among the guests, with Korean K-pop star Jungkook performing a mini-concert.
The BBC relegated the ceremony to the "Red Button" service and online, however, BBC One decided not to air the ceremony live but rather mentioned alleged accusations against Qatar.
"It’s the most controversial World Cup in history and a ball hasn’t even been kicked," said Lineker, a former England football captain who was among the hosts during the broadcaster's World Cup program.
Lineker's comment was shared by many, reminding a recent remark by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, defending Qatar from what he called Western "hypocrisy" amid criticism of the Gulf country’s hosting of World Cup 2022.
"Europe should stop the criticism and focus on improving its migrants' conditions. ... What we Europeans have been doing for the last 3,000 years, we should be apologizing for the next 3,000 years before starting to give moral lessons," he said on Saturday.
Meanwhile, users also accused the BBC of "double standard" on social media asking why the broadcaster did not have the same approach when the 2022 Winter Olympics took place in China and the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Users also shared Daily Mirror's story -- titled England's £115 ($136) Qatar World Cup shirts made by Thai factory workers paid just £1 an hour -- in response to human rights allegations towards Qatar.
The BBC relegated the ceremony to the "Red Button" service and online, however, BBC One decided not to air the ceremony live but rather mentioned alleged accusations against Qatar.
"It’s the most controversial World Cup in history and a ball hasn’t even been kicked," said Lineker, a former England football captain who was among the hosts during the broadcaster's World Cup program.
Lineker's comment was shared by many, reminding a recent remark by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, defending Qatar from what he called Western "hypocrisy" amid criticism of the Gulf country’s hosting of World Cup 2022.
"Europe should stop the criticism and focus on improving its migrants' conditions. ... What we Europeans have been doing for the last 3,000 years, we should be apologizing for the next 3,000 years before starting to give moral lessons," he said on Saturday.
Meanwhile, users also accused the BBC of "double standard" on social media asking why the broadcaster did not have the same approach when the 2022 Winter Olympics took place in China and the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Users also shared Daily Mirror's story -- titled England's £115 ($136) Qatar World Cup shirts made by Thai factory workers paid just £1 an hour -- in response to human rights allegations towards Qatar.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.