It was after Saturday’s bronze final in the World Cup, where Croatia beat Morocco 2-1, that the situation arose. Fifa President Gianni Infantino and Qatar’s Football President Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al Thani were on hand at the awards ceremony out on the grass to hand out bronze medals and congratulate those who had taken part in the match. Went straight past When the referees came to the podium, led by the match’s main referee Abdulrahman Al-Jassim, you could see from the TV images that Qatar’s football president took all the referees by the hand to congratulate them on their efforts, with one exception: the female assistant referee reserve Neuza Back was met with a small nod before she continued. The Qatari referees were congratulated with both a handshake and a nose-to-nose gesture from the World Cup host’s football president. A gesture which, according to local media, is a sign of deep respect. Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al Thani congratulated the Qatari judges in this way. Photo: Skjermdump / news Mari Norbakk, who is a postdoctoral fellow at Christian Michelsen’s institute and a social anthropologist specializing in the Middle East and especially Qatar and Egypt, tells news that she thinks the sheikh’s appearance may be for religious reasons. – I guess he doesn’t take her hand because, like some Muslim men and women, he doesn’t shake hands with the opposite sex. In Islamic custom, it is (also) polite and respectful to refrain from shaking hands, but here he could still acknowledge the referee with a bow or a hand on his heart, says Norbakk to news. Expert: – Looks strange Rania Maktabi, associate professor and Middle East expert at Østfold University College, knows Qatar well and has, among other things, written about the country in several books. – Yes, it looks strange that the football president does not take the female referee by the hand, she says to news. She says that two things strike her when she sees the clip: She thinks it has been clarified in advance that he will not hold her hand, and she thinks it may be that the Qatari football president “is orthodox in his way of socializing with the other sex”. – I myself have experienced that men in the Gulf do not want to greet me with a handshake. It doesn’t happen often, but it does happen, she says. Neuza Back did not get a handshake from Qatar’s football president. Photo: Screen dump news has offered both the WC committee in Qatar and Fifa to comment on the matter, but so far we have not received a reply. – You don’t think this is possible The incident quickly became a topic of conversation both in social media and traditional media. Belgian Sporza devoted time to the situation in their studio broadcast after the match, and the reactions were characterized by astonishment, writes Dutch Voetbalzone. – You don’t believe that this is possible, stated Sporza presenter Karl Vannieuwkerke when he saw the female judge walk past the sheik without being caught by the hand. news has directed a request to the female judge Neuza Back and offered her to comment on what happened. At the time of writing, we have not received a response. Neuza Back is again at the center of a situation where she is treated differently. Photo: INA FASSBENDER / AFP Happened last year as well In 2021 she also experienced a similar situation after a match in the Club World Cup between Bayern Munich and Tigres in Qatar. Then the Emir of Qatar’s younger brother, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, chose not to give a fist bump to the two female assistant referees Edina Alves Batista and mentioned Back, but did so with the male referees. At the time, handshakes were stricter due to the corona pandemic. Now the World Cup ends with the final between France and Argentina on Sunday at 4 p.m. That match will be shown on NRK1.
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Qatar’s football president took all the WC referees by the hand – except the female one – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcast schedule
