JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – FIFA has officially unveiled the mascot for the 2022 World Cup Qatar.
The mascot, named La’eeb, was released in conjunction with the draw for the Qatar 2022 World Cup final on Friday, (01/04/2022) in Doha, Qatar.
La’eeb in Arabic means ‘highly skilled player’.
La’eeb’s mascot is made by wearing a white cloth and wearing an igal that is tied around his head.
Read also: Welcoming the World Cup, Qatar has a new landmark in the form of numbers 2022
In addition, La’eeb is designed to float in the air without legs and arms and has a cheerful facial expression.
Netizens on social media called La’eeb’s mascot similar to the legendary cartoon film that aired in the 1990s, Casper’s ghost.
La’eeb and victims of migrant workers in Qatar
Another controversy is the mascot La’eeb is considered to have many mysteries that make many people curious.
One of them is that La’eeb’s character is associated with migrant workers who are victims of the construction of the stadium where the Qatar 2022 World Cup will be held.
The reason is, the mascot that is made to float without legs and hands is called a ghost.
“Is this #Qatar2022 mascot the ghost of all the people who died while building the stadium?” tweet twitter account @greyghostx, (01/04/2022).
Is this #Qatar2022 mascot the ghost of all those who died constructing the stadiums?
— GreyGhost (@greyghostx) April 1, 2022
For information, over the past 10 years, Qatar has intensively built large-scale projects, ranging from stadiums, hotels, to a number of other supporting facilities.
But behind that, revealed the fact that during the construction process of the project, there were at least 6,500 migrant workers who died.
Because of this, a number of people have criticized Qatar for allegedly exploiting migrant workers on a large scale in the project.
“More than 6,500 migrants have died in Qatar since Qatar won the right to host the World Cup,” the Twitter account said @ BenjAlvarez1.
Protest: German artist Volker-Johannes Trieb placed 6,500 deflated soccer balls in front of FIFA headquarters.
More than 6,500 migrants have died in Qatar since it won the right to host the World Cup, @guardian revealed last year.pic.twitter.com/3XJjOu5q6i
– Benjamin Alvarez (@ BenjAlvarez1) April 1, 2022
So, what does FIFA say about La’eeb?
Meanwhile, Deputy Director General, Marketing, Communications and Tournament Experience, Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy Khalid Ali Al Mawlawi said that everyone is free to have any interpretation of the shape of the La’eeb mascot.
FIFA explained that the mascot, which was created with the theme ‘Now is All’, wanted to encourage everyone to believe in themselves.
In addition, the mascot La’eeb is also a symbol that football can bring joy to everyone.
“We are pleased to introduce La’eeb as the Official Mascot for the first FIFA World Cup in the Middle East and Arabia. He comes from the mascot-verse i.e. an indescribable place. We encourage everyone to imagine what it would look like,” Khalid was quoted as saying fifa.com, Sunday (03/04/2022).
Khalid is optimistic that the La’eeb icon will be known for having a youthful spirit, spreading joy and confidence wherever he goes.
La’eeb comes from a parallel world where tournament mascots live. It is a world where ideas and creativity form the basis of character that lives in everyone’s mind.
Khalid believes La’eeb’s character will be everywhere, welcoming the world, inspiring young fans and fueling the action during the tournament, which will run from November 21 to December 18, 2022.
“We’re sure fans everywhere will love this lovable and fun character. La’eeb will play an important role as we engage fans young and old in the Qatar FIFA World Cup experience.”
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