As Saudi Arabia prepares to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup, increasingly more human rights groups, civil society, and citizens worldwide are increasingly calling for a full boycott of the tournament. While the bulk of the criticism targets the Kingdom’s established track record of domestic — from stifling dissent to the absence of political liberties — there is also an equally pressing but underacknowledged basis for protesting the tournament:
Saudi foreign policy and military intervention in war crimes and destabilizing regional affairs. An objective gaze should also be directed at Saudi Arabia’s current efforts at geopolitics normalization — most recently its nascent relationship with Israel — that further deepen cycles of violence and impunity in the region.
Saudi Arabia’s War Crimes Record
Saudi foreign interventions, particularly in Yemen, have caused deep wounds to the lives of millions. The Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen since 2015 has claimed thousands of civilian lives, caused widespread famine, and what the UN has characterized as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Established war crimes are:
1. Aerial bombing of civilian infrastructure:
Hospitals, schools, markets, and residential areas were bombed in contravention of international humanitarian law.
2. Prohibition on weapons usage:
Prohibited deployment of cluster and other indiscriminate bombs in residential civilian zones.
3. Obstruction of humanitarian aid
Regular blockade of gasoline, food supplies, and medications, leading to famine-like crises.
4. Children massacres:
Multiple bombings of school buses and school facilities, killing children in abundance (in tens of thousands as per UNICEF estimates).
5. Lack of Accountability
Saudi Arabia coerced the UN to delist the coalition from the list of child rights violators and excluded foreign investigations.
Normalization with Israel: Compounding the Problem
Saudi Arabia has recently been in the news for gradually pursuing normalization with Israel. Although proponents frame it as a move towards peace and regional cooperation, close examination reveals that it is a cynical exercise of geopolitics being played to consolidate power blocks instead of correcting historical injustices or promoting human rights.
Principal issues of Saudi-Israeli normalization:
- Palestinian rights ignored: Ignoring the Arab Peace Initiative’s prerequisite for Palestinian statehood before normalization.
- Enhanced military-industrial relationships: US-supported defense agreements and arms sales between Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the US.
- Sharing of intelligence: Cooperation on spying, cyber-security, and combat tactics, with the potential to further tighten clampdowns throughout the region.
- Destabilization of the region: Backing Israeli hard-liners to pursue through war rather than diplomacy (as seen in Gaza 2023).
- Palestinian marginalization:ensation of international support for Palestinian statehood and exacerbation of suffering in Gaza, West Bank, and beyond.
Sportswashing and the 2034 World Cup
Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup is a classic example of a larger policy of “sportswashing” — employing massive sporting events to clean up its global reputation and shift attention from human rights violations. Examples of Saudi Arabia’s sportswashing strategy:
- Heavy sports investment:
Formula 1 Grand Prix, LIV Golf, high-ticket boxing events, and e-sports tournaments.
- 2029 Asian Winter Games bid:
Proposed for a desert city (Trojena), amidst environmental and human rights concerns.
- Migrant worker exploitation:
The Threat of dangerous working conditions for sports facilities. Gigantic scale of wage theft and denial of workers’ rights (particularly against South Asian and African migrants).
- Drowning dissent:
Harassment of critics and whistleblowers of the World Cup preparations or human rights violations. Moreover, no freedom of expression or freedom of assembly protections for citizens and workers.
Arms Sales and Western Complicity in Saudi War Crimes
Airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen have been greatly facilitated by Western arms sales to Saudi Arabia, notably the United States and the United Kingdom. Both nations continue to provide Saudi Arabia with sophisticated weapons despite mounting proof of war crimes and human rights violations.
These weapons are employed to attack civilian targets, like schools and hospitals, and therefore bring Western governments into the picture as actors in today’s humanitarian disaster. The uninterrupted supply of weapons to Saudi Arabia, most often justified on economic and strategic grounds, gives rise to very pertinent ethical questions on worldwide accountability and the long-term viability of interests over human lives.
The Price of Ignoring Saudi Arabia’s Military Aggression
Ignoring Saudi Arabia’s military belligerence in Yemen has a heavy price tag in human lives and world security. The conflict has already killed tens of thousands of civilians, sent millions more into exile, and imposed famine and disease on them. By not denouncing Saudi Arabia for these acts, the world is giving a signal that such belligerent behavior will go without any consequence. This not only encourages the Saudi regime but also undermines international efforts towards peace and stability in the Middle East, creating a dangerous precedent for future conflicts around the world.
Why Boycott Matters?
Boycotting the 2034 FIFA World Cup is not a gesture — it is an actual avenue for opposing the normalization of war crimes and human rights abuses. Denying Saudi Arabia the prestige and financial benefits of hosting the tournament would deny it the opportunity to whitewash itself, to wash its crimes clean and profit from the violation of human rights. It would be a loud and clear message that war crimes, destabilization of the region, and impunity have no room and cannot be taken lightly in the guise of entertainment.
A boycott would halt Saudi Arabia’s extensive sportswashing initiative and undermine its attempt to utilize global sport to divert attention from its home and foreign human rights abuses. It would also show solidarity with Yemeni civilians, Palestinians, dissidents, and migrant workers who have been victimized by Saudi policy. Finally, an international boycott would force FIFA to overhaul its host selection process and implement clear, actionable human rights standards for future tournaments.
Boycott Saudi Arabia FIFA World Cup 2034: Say No to War Crimes
Human rights activists, football supporters, and civil society actors are raising their voices regarding the 2034 FIFA World Cup. The decision is clear. To forget Saudi Arabia’s war crimes and regional destabilization at the price of a display of sport does violence to international sport’s staging of the ideals of justice, equality, and human dignity.
Fans must mobilize the moving of the tournament, mobilize national teams and players to boycott participation, and mobilize sponsors and broadcasters to withdraw support. Informing football supporters of Saudi Arabia’s war crimes and human rights abuses is crucial, as is standing up for independent media and civil society voices that still uncover the truth behind the Kingdom’s sportswashing. Boycotting is not merely about football. It is about refusing to normalize war crimes and oppression on the world stage.