Football tournament to give blue-collar workers a sense of identity

By Anil John/Sports Editor

In what is perhaps the first initiative of its kind in the Middle East, or even the world, Qatar will launch a football tournament exclusively for “blue-collar” workers to be played at the Al Wakrah and Al Rayyan stadiums from Friday.

The Workers Cup will feature 16 teams from mainly companies involved in the construction sector and is aimed at giving the tens of thousands of lowly-paid workers a sense of identity and belonging in a country where they largely remain faceless with precious few avenues for sports and entertainment.

The concept was devised by QSports Leagues, a company specialising in organising sports and recreation activities for corporates, but has found support from the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC), the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee and the Qatar Stars League (QSL) which will provide technical expertise for the event.

“The Workers Cup is an initiative by QSports League and is being sponsored by the Qatar Stars League and has the full backing of the Qatar Olympic Committee and the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee,” Ben Panton, QSports Leagues’ director of marketing and public relations, told Gulf Times yesterday.

“The tournament offers a chance for construction workers who toil away building stadiums but never actually get to play in them to showcase their talents. The Workers Cup is a concept which we hope will give them a sense of pride and belonging and help them integrate better.”

Panton said that because the workers themselves are largely unorganised, QSports Leagues had no option but to approach the managements of their companies and convince them to take the lead and allow their employees to be part of this initiative.

“Most companies we approached were delighted with the concept of a Workers Cup,” Panton said. “The managers we spoke to well were aware of the social and other benefits of allowing their workers play sport as part of a proper tournament fully backed by the QOC and the QSL.”

Companies, however, will have to shell out QR6,000 as entry fee, but Panton said that was not much of a problem. “We are oversubscribed and had to limit the tournament to 16 teams,” he said.

The winning team would take home a trophy and QR18,000 while the runners-up will get QR9,000 and the third-placed team QR6,000.

Panton added that the Workers Cup was not limited to just football.

“Obviously football being the most popular sport in the region and also because Qatar is hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup, we thought it would be better we start with football,” Panton said, adding that Workers Cup tournaments in cricket, volleyball and basketball will shortly follow.

“Cricket is the most popular sport among workers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal so a Workers Cup in cricket is also in the pipeline which will be held over April and May.”

The Workers Cup comes at a time when Qatar is facing accusations from international trade unions that its large blue-collared workforce toil in harsh conditions without the basic rights of proper accommodation, recreation and healthcare.

The Workers Cup initiative, however, is expected to go a long way in easing some of these concerns.