DOI: 10.4324/9781032699974-13 10 Combating Islamophobia English in the Linguistic Landscape of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Sara Hillman and Rizwan Ahmad Introduction In 2022, Qatar made history as the first Arab and Muslim country to host the FIFA World Cup, marking a significant milestone not only for football, but also for Arab and Muslim countries at large. This event was poised to showcase Qatar’s rapid development, its investment in world-class infrastructure, and its commitment to bridging cultural divides through the universal language of football. However, the run-up to the tournament was marred by a series of controversies and criticisms in the international media: allegations of bribery and corruption in the bidding process, concerns over labor rights and working conditions for migrant workers involved in the construction of World Cup infrastructure, concerns about how LGBTQ fans would be treated and whether fans would have access to alcohol, and apprehensions about the environmental impact of hosting the tournament in a desert climate. Undercurrents of Islamophobia shaped much of the discourse in Western media about the event, and critiques were perceived to be veiled in cultural and religious biases rather than grounded in factual criticisms of Qatar’s policies or practices. Sadiki (2022) argued that “Qatar was viewed with disdain the moment it won its bid, treated as an outsider gatecrashing a party of the elite” (n.p.). This was further exemplified by a cartoon published by the French satirical newspaper Le Canard enchaîné, which depicted Qatari footballers in a manner that many condemned as racist (Al Jazeera, 2022). The cartoon, appearing in the newspaper’s October 2022 issue that focused on Qatar and its role as the host of the FIFA World Cup 2022, portrayed seven bearded men, labeled as Qataris and dressed partly in traditional robes and partly in militant attire, engaging in a football game while armed with machetes, guns, and a bomb belt. This representation sparked outrage across social media platforms, with users denouncing the cartoon for its “blatant Islamophobia” and “racism.” Critics argued that the cartoon perpetuated harmful stereotypes by equating Qataris and, by exten- sion, Muslims, with terrorism. The backlash was particularly strong in Arab and Muslim countries and included a wide range of voices, from social media users to officials in Qatar. For instance, Hamad Al-Kawari, a minister of state and the presi- dent of Qatar’s National Library, criticized the publication for resorting to “lies, Copyright Material – Provided by Taylor & Francis Proof Review Only – Not For Distribution 9781032699967_pi-270.indd 198 9781032699967_pi-270.indd 198 18-Jan-25 22:25:52 18-Jan-25 22:25:52