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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Freddie Bennett

Qatar's cultural transformation since 1996 when England last won the World Cup

England's World Cup win in 1966 was a standout moment in British history and will remain so for however long it takes for football to 'Come Home' once again. But for this year's hosts Qatar, the 1966 World Cup was a time when they were not an independent country and were only in the very early stages of their own history.

Qatar has grown hugely since becoming independent in the 1970's and now stands as one of the wealthiest places on Earth with cultures and laws that have caused huge controversy since Qatar was announced by FIFA President Sepp Blatter as the hosts of the 2022 World Cup.

Twelve years later, and the first game is already behind us and there is no telling what might happen in the next few weeks, and there are endless possibilities.

The hosts got us started with their opening game against South American underdogs Ecuador in Group A on Sunday.

On Monday, England took on Qatar's Middle Eastern neighbours Iran, and Bellingham, Saka, Sterling, Rashford and Grealish all scored before Iran scored a 103rd minute penalty.

The talk around the tournament will no doubt continue throughout as for many of us one question will linger...

How did we get here?

To understand how it came to be that the FIFA World Cup is being hosted by the small desert country with almost no footballing heritage, it's probably best to go back a few years to a time when oil was first discovered in Qatar.

Before this time, the main source of trade for Qatar was fishing and it remained one of the poorest places on the planet for many years.

But the discovery of a huge quantity of oil reserves in Dukhan Field, Qatar, in 1940 changed all of that.

Many fans are unused to the hotter climate (Getty Images)

Qatar moved quickly

Qatar soon launched itself into independence thanks to revenues from oil and was able to become its own country on September 3 1971, just five years after Bobby Moore held the famous World Cup trophy for England.

Qatar is a country that is led by an Emir which is an Islamic ruler and many of the laws and customs of the country have their roots in Islam's Sharia Law.

From the moment of their independence, the expansion of Qatar came so quickly and vastly that they did not get around to writing a constitution until 2005.

Some of the regressive laws that are enshrined in this include homosexuality being illegal, a ban on alcohol in public and men are seen as guardians of women who need to ask permission before doing things like getting married.

Just five years after Qatar's constitution came into being, they were awarded the FIFA World Cup.

FIFA World Cup 2022 hosts

Much controversy surrounds their bid to host with bribery allegations, FIFA U-turns and life bans being involved in a bid which had never provided so much uncertainty.

Sepp Blatter recently suggested it was a mistake to give this tournament to Qatar, as he said to Swiss media outlet Tages- Anzeiger : "Thanks to the four votes of Mr Platini and his (UEFA) team, the World Cup went to Qatar rather than the United States. It's the truth.

"At the time, we actually agreed in the Executive Committee that Russia should get the 2018 World Cup and the USA that of 2022. It would have been a gesture of peace if the two long-standing political opponents had hosted the World Cup one after the other.”

Qatar now stands as one of the top ten wealthiest nations on the planet, despite its population of just around three million people. It makes a vast quantity of money through its oil revenues and the estimated worth of its current Emir is around $2billion.

Controversy has never been far away since Sepp Blatter uttered the single word 'Qatar' all those years ago.

Reports suggest that thousands of migrant workers have died whilst building the futuristic stadiums which are on show during the competition and there has been issues over the treatment of the LGBT+ community in the country.

Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar, where same-sex relationships can be punishable by the death sentence.

Andrew Boff, deputy chair of the London Assembly and a leading Conservative gay rights campaigner, said Qatar is not safe for LGBT+ people.

"Obviously, when you go to a country, you respect their traditions," said Mr Boff told the BBC.

"But the mere fact that being gay, or lesbian, or trans is illegal in Qatar and will open you up for prosecution means it is not a safe place for LGBT+ people to travel to and the government advice should clearly say that."

He added that some in Qatar clearly have a "medieval attitude to human rights" following comments by a Qatar World Cup ambassador, who dubbed homosexuality "damage in the mind".

Already England, Wales and other European nations have pulled out of wearing the OneLove armband at the World Cup after players were threatened with being handed yellow cards.

The captains, including England's Harry Kane and Gareth Bale of Wales, were set to wear the armband during matches to promote diversity and inclusion.

But in a joint statement, seven football associations said they could not put their players "in a position where they could face sporting sanctions".

"We are very frustrated by the Fifa decision, which we believe is unprecedented," the statement added.

Currently, the ruler of Qatar is Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani who is overseeing the World Cup and will no doubt want to make it a success for his country.

However, with the huge questions surrounding how Qatar managed to get the World Cup in the first place and the disagreement toward the laws within the country, it is looking to be a tournament that will live long in the memory for everybody.

Do you have a story to share? We want to hear all about it. Email yourmirror@mirror.co.uk.

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