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GENERAL ENGLISH · BREAKING NEWS · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

CONTROVERSIAL
WORLD CUP KICKS
OFF

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1 Warm up

Discuss the questions in pairs or small groups.

1. Do you enjoy watching football? If not, do you have a friend or family member who does?
2. Are you watching the Qatar World Cup? Why/why not?
3. Why do you think some people are choosing not to watch this World Cup in particular?
4. How would you feel if your country was selected to organise the World Cup? Would this be a
good thing or a bad thing?

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2 Pre-listening task: vocabulary focus

Match words with the correct definitions.

colonial (adj.) concern (n) grant (v) host (v)

judge (v) kick off (pv) boycott (v) tournament (n)

1. connected with or belonging to a country that controls another country

2. give or allow someone something, usually in an official way

3. a competition with a series of games between many teams or players, with

one winner at the end
4. a feeling of worry, especially one that is shared by many people

5. form an opinion about somebody/something, based on the information you

have
6. when a game or tournament is started by a football team

7. organise an event to which others are invited and make all the arrangements
for them
8. refuse to buy, use or take part in something as a way of protesting

3 Listening for specific information

Listen to the report. Match the numbers and dates mentioned with the things they relate to.
Audio

1.2 million 200 billion 2010 29 40 6500 7

a. When Qatar was granted the right to host the World Cup.

b. The number of new stadiums that have been built.

c. The number of migrant workers that have died in Qatar since the country was
awarded the World Cup, according to an investigation by The Guardian.
d. The number of migrant workers that have died while constructing stadiums,
according to organisers.
e. The number of fans that the organisers of the tournament estimate will travel
to Qatar for the World Cup.
f. The number of days that the tournament will last for.
Video
g. The amount (in dollars) that the tournament has reportedly cost Qatar.

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4 Listening for comprehension

Listen to the report again. Answer the questions true, false or not given.

1. Qatar and Russia were awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cups at the same time, during a special
ceremony.
2. Since being awarded the World Cup, criticism of the decision has increased.
3. According to reports, construction on the World Cup stadiums took place during the hottest part
of the day.
4. Reportedly, construction workers were given special, luxury housing by Qatar officials.
5. Qatar’s stance on gay rights has been criticised.
6. The president of Fifa has accused critics of racism and hypocrisy.
7. London and Paris are among cities that have decided to set up special fan zones so that supporters
can watch the games in public.

5 Reading: general vocabulary

Match the words and phrases in bold with the correct definitions.
Group 1

1. Corruption starts at the top but can affect every aspect of society. (n)
2. Advertisers are considering dropping Twitter after Musk bought the social network. (v)
3. Football captains usually wear an armband so they can be identified during games. (n)
4. At my school, the punishment for being late was to stay behind at the end of the day. (n)
5. After my neighbour threatened me, I went to the police. (v)

a. say that you will cause trouble, hurt, punish somebody etc. if you do not get what you want
b. stop doing or discussing something; to not continue with something
c. dishonest or illegal behaviour, especially of people in authority
d. something that is done to punish someone
e. a piece of cloth worn around the arm as a sign of something, for example, that somebody has an
official position

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Group 2

1. I’m conflicted – I’d like to move to the city, but I think it will be too noisy. (adj.)

2. Many of the politicians in my country are corrupt. (adj.)

3. I found a good stream of the match. We should watch it together! (n)

4. The police said my brother was guilty of a traffic violation, but I think they made a mistake. (n)

5. Apparently, my boss’s offer of extra money didn’t extend to part-time workers like me. (v)

a. a continuous flow of video or sound sent over the Internet

b. confused about what to do or choose because you have strong but very different feelings

c. the act of going against or refusing to obey a law, an agreement, etc.

d. relate to or include somebody/something

e. describing people who are willing to use their power to do dishonest or illegal things in return for
money or to get an advantage

Discuss these questions in pairs.

1. Would you describe the government in your country as corrupt? Is there anything we can do
about corruption in general?
2. When was the last time you watched an illegal stream?
3. Do you think the European teams that dropped their armband protest were right to do so?

6 Pre-reading task: reading for general understanding

You are going to read a text about people’s opinions on the controversy surrounding the Qatar World
Cup. Scan the text quickly and match the country the speaker is from with the correct speaker. One
country cannot be matched to any of the four speakers in the text and should be marked ‘Not given’.

Ricky Omar Niamh Lucille not given

Wales

France

England

Saudi Arabia

Ireland

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Should the World Cup have taken place in Qatar?

Four people share their thoughts on the controversial tournament

1. Ricky, 27

This will be the first World Cup I won’t watch. I love football. I play it, I go to games, I even have a season ticket for
my local team, which cost quite a lot of money! For me, though, this tournament should never have taken place.
In the future, when talking about the World Cup, people will instantly be thinking of corruption. I don’t know how
many workers died building the stadiums – maybe we’ll never know – but I think the decision to award the World
Cup to Qatar will forever be a stain on the sport. Maybe football will recover, maybe not. I’m also disappointed
that my team – England – didn’t boycott the tournament completely. In fact, none of the teams did. What kind of
a message does that send out?

2. Omar, 34

A lot of the complaints I’ve heard about the World Cup seem, to me, to be a little racist. I feel like people from
Western countries think that the way they live is the only correct way, and that anybody who has different beliefs,
or a different way of life should change. Well, I’m not from Qatar – I’m Saudi – but I believe that, if you go to
somebody else’s country, you should respect their laws, their religion and their culture. I have heard some bad
things about the World Cup, but I know that workers are treated poorly in many countries, even in the West. It’s
strange, in my opinion, that so many Europeans suddenly care about migrants, even as they turn away boats full
of asylum seekers. I will go to the World Cup to support my country, and like many of my friends, I’m proud that
football has come to the Arab world at last.

3. Niamh, 21

I play for a women’s team, and we’re all very conflicted about the World Cup. Some of us are going to watch it,
others won’t. I still don’t know what I’ll do. My country – Ireland – hasn’t qualified, but England and Wales have.
All of us are supporting Wales, of course. Still, I don’t like the idea of watching the matches in the pub. If I do
watch, it’ll be at home, probably an illegal stream. I don’t want to give advertisers any money. Although women’s
football has come a long way in recent years, it just doesn’t feel right that the biggest football tournament in the
world got given to a country in which women’s rights are so limited. I wonder how many Qatari women will be
watching the matches in the pop-up stadiums?

4. Lucille, 49

Here in France, we have a strong tradition of protest. Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear to extend to football. Just
before the tournament, a number of European teams dropped their planned protest – an armband – because FIFA
threatened them with sanctions. What was this terrible punishment to be? A yellow card. These highly-paid
footballers quickly backed down. Meanwhile, around the world, people are dying in order to peacefully protest
against their corrupt governments. Now, I’ve never liked football, but I usually support the national team in big
tournaments. Never again. They’ve let us all down, firstly by agreeing to take part, and secondly by failing to
use the opportunity to draw attention to the human rights violations committed by the host nation. I’m also
disappointed that some celebrities took large amounts of money in order to promote the whole thing, but I’m not
very surprised.

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Look at the following sentence. In pairs, discuss the meaning of the underlined phrase. Do you agree
or disagree with the statement?
"David Beckham’s decision to give his support to the Qatar World Cup will forever be a stain on his reputation."

7 Reading comprehension
Read the article again. Match statements with the correct speakers. Some statements can be matched
to more than one speaker. One of the statements cannot be matched to any of the speakers and
should be marked ‘Not given’.

1. They are happy that the World Cup is being played in Qatar. →
2. They won’t be watching the tournament.→
3. They expect their country to win the World Cup.→
4. They are disappointed that their team didn’t boycott the tournament.→
5. Their team didn’t qualify for the tournament.→

Now, for each question, choose the answer you believe best suits the speaker.
1. What does Ricky think people will associate the 2022 World Cup with?

a. pop-up stadiums b. human rights c. corruption

2. Why might Omar think that some people from Western countries are being hypocritical about the
World Cup?
a. They didn’t seem to have a problem when the World Cup was played in Russia.
b. They appear to be concerned about migrant rights, but turn away boats full of asylum seekers.
c. They expect people to obey their laws and customs, but don’t follow local laws or customs
when in other countries.

3. What is Niamh’s biggest concern regarding the 2022 World Cup?

a. She doesn’t think countries such as Wales and England should be taking part.
b. She feels that women’s rights are limited in the host country.
c. She’s uncomfortable with some of the advertisers that have been linked to the tournament.

4. In which ways does Lucille feel that her national team has let the country down?

a. By agreeing to take part in the tournament and failing to use it to draw attention to human
rights issues.
b. By performing badly in recent tournaments.
c. By taking part in a protest that wasn’t very effective.

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8 Optional task: play a game

Work in pairs or small groups and try to explain to your team the word that is visible on your card.

9 Talking point

In pairs or small groups, discuss the following questions.

1. Do you know anybody who is boycotting the World Cup? Do you think this is the right
or wrong decision?
2. Should Qatar have been granted the 2022 World Cup? Why/why not?
3. Do you believe some of the criticism from Europeans towards Qatar racist or hypocritical?
Why/why not?
4. Will football’s reputation be damaged by the 2022 World Cup? Why/why not?
5. Do you consider Fifa to be a corrupt organisation? Why/why not?
6. In general, do you think football has had a positive or negative effect on the world?

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10 Homework: vocabulary practice

Part A: Complete the sentences with the missing words.

boycott colonial concerns granted

hosting judge kick off tournament

1. I’m a dinner party this weekend. I hope it’s a success – I’m not very good at
organising things!
2. It’s important not to others until you have all the facts about a situation.
3. My sister has decided to Amazon because she’s worried about the rights of their
workers.
4. I feel terrible about my country’s past.
5. We’ve been permission to organise a concert in one of the largest parks in the
city. I’m excited!
6. After winning the chess , Jane decided to use the prize money to go on holiday.
7. Our boss doesn’t usually listen to his employees’ .
8. While we were waiting for the match to , a dog ran onto the field and started
chasing the players around.

Part B: Complete the dialogue below. After completing the dialogue, read it out with a partner,
focusing on pronouncing the key vocabulary correctly.

armband conflicted corrupt corruption

dropped punishments stream threatened

1
Anya: Are you going to watch the World Cup? I’m a bit about it myself –
2
I’d like to support my country, but I’ve heard about all the at Fifa
and I’m not sure!
3
Wayne: Well, all large organisations are , aren’t they? I’m going to watch it
4
myself, apparently my team is going to wear an as a protest. That’s
good enough for me!
Anya: Actually, I heard that none of the teams are going to wear them now. Apparently
5 6
Fifa them with if they did!
Wayne: Really? That seems a bit strange.
7
Anya: The organisers also plans to offer Budweiser beer in the stadiums,
at the last minute.
Wayne: That’s fine by me. Have you tasted Budweiser? Anyway, I wasn’t planning to pay to
8
watch it. I’ll find a online, so that I don’t give Fifa any money.

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Extended activity/writing homework

Write a discussion essay on the topic below. Your essay should discuss arguments for and against
the statement and should be between 240-280 words.

If Western countries really cared about human rights violations in Qatar, they would
have refused to take part in the World Cup.

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