World Cup 2022: 'Being a gay fan in Doha is so taboo we're invisible'

Phil, 39, is simply a lifelong shot instrumentality who's successful Qatar for his 4th World Cup successful a row. Qatar has said "everyone is welcome", but arsenic a cheery antheral travelling successful a state wherever same-sex relationships are criminalised, helium tells america done his diary however the acquisition has been challenging.

On the mode to the World Cup successful Russia successful 2018, the airdrome was perfectly packed with fans from astir the world, but it conscionable looks similar an mean Tuesday present tonight.

I've been an England instrumentality for longer than I've known what the connection "gay" means. My archetypal memories of shot are of watching the World Cup successful 1990 astatine my grandparents' house, and being allowed to enactment up precocious for England games.

I'm alert that my determination to spell to Qatar puts maine successful the important number of cheery England fans - but if we're superior that the crippled is for everyone, I'm not going to fto Qatar's despicable LGBT rights halt maine from enjoying the crippled that I love. I don't consciousness I person to take betwixt being a cheery antheral and an England fan.

I judge that I'm saying that from a presumption of utmost privilege. There's a furniture of extortion that applies to maine arsenic a occidental foreigner that wouldn't use to LGBTQ Qataris. That's what I'm astir conflicted about.

I'm conscionable walking retired of the stadium aft the archetypal game, Japan 2-1 Germany. A superb game.

But it's each precise unusual here. There's a sterile ambiance wrong the stadiums, no-one seems to rather cognize what to do. Security are managing things rather intimately - there's a circumstantial country to person your flags and banners examined earlier going in.

On the metro contiguous I saw a motion saying shot is "a conveyance for respecting quality rights", to which the evident question is - but whose human rights?

There is simply a tonne of information wrong the stadiums, much than I've seen astatine immoderate of the different tournaments. It's funny due to the fact that the ambiance present seems to beryllium non-threatening. So what precisely are they looking retired for?

I spoke to a cheery instrumentality from the Netherlands successful a barroom earlier. Like me, helium feels somewhat conflicted astir being here.

I besides had 1 of my dating apps unfastened contiguous and got respective messages from Saudi men. So the Qataris whitethorn unreal that queer beingness successful the Middle East is dead, but online it's live and well.

Just finished watching England v USA. At half-time I bumped into an England instrumentality who was wearing a rainbow ribbon, and asked him if helium had immoderate issues getting into the stadium. Apparently helium was looked implicit by 3 oregon 4 antithetic people, but was past told, "oh, it's OK now". I've besides seen a mates of fans successful USA jerseys with rainbow numbers connected the back, truthful I conjecture "green shoots" is the phrase.

I've been reasoning astir that "football is for everyone" slogan rather a batch since I've been here. I deliberation the locals genuinely bash judge it, they conscionable don't see cheery fans arsenic portion of the equation. It's not needfully homophobic, it's conscionable specified a taboo taxable that we're invisible.

It's 1 of the reasons a batch of my chap LGBT fans haven't been capable to travel retired present - they've felt, for understandable reasons, excluded.

I'm walking retired of the stadium astatine the extremity of the Australia v Tunisia game.

Just aft half-time, a radical of Tunisian fans unfurled a monolithic emblem saying "Free Palestine". Nothing incorrect with that - but erstwhile officials speech astir keeping authorities retired of sport, and past a emblem that size is allowed successful by the emblem constabulary astatine the stadium.

We've watched France vs Denmark successful downtown Doha with groups of Mexican, Argentinian and European fans, talking astir however this compares to different World Cups. For me, there's a batch to similar astir however Qatar person tally this from a purely shot perspective, and connected the tract there've been immoderate bully games.

But what I support coming backmost to is the sheer hypocrisy of the messaging, "say nary to discrimination". I've met a mates of radical who've said, "you're perfectly harmless here, wherefore does it substance that you're gay?".

I cognize I bash person that privilege of being comparatively harmless compared to LGBT Qataris, but unless you've really walked successful our shoes, and person felt that feeling of unease, of feeling excluded, it's precise hard to describe.

I'm astir to get connected my formation backmost to the UK, so, signing disconnected for the past clip successful Qatar.

When Qatar was awarded the World Cup successful 2010, determination was an outcry - but it was much astir the corruption allegations, not LGBT rights. Perhaps that's a measurement of the advancement wrong Europe and the UK.

Have I ever felt acrophobic for my information here? No. Do I deliberation I would've done, nether different circumstances? Also nary again. But bash I consciousness that my acquisition present has been compromised by knowing what happens to the section LGBT population? Yes, I do.

We're told to conscionable "focus connected the football", but determination are things successful beingness that are much important.

As told to Josh Parry and Ashitha Nagesh. Phil shared his acquisition with america done dependable notes connected an encrypted messaging app. We are not publishing his afloat name.