Single straight World Cup fans shocked to discover they can go to jail in Qatar for having sex

Iran and Spain match at the FIFA World Cup 2018
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

LGBTQ soccer fans aren’t the only ones feeling uneasy now about the 2022 World Cup taking place in Qatar. Both homosexuality and any sex outside of marriage are illegal in the Muslim-majority nation where Islam is the state religion, and the latter is now causing concern for fans planning to attend the event which begins in November.

U.K. tabloid The Daily Star reports that couples with differing last names are being denied hotel reservations, and one insider warns of “very strict and scary consequences if you are caught. There is a feeling this could be a very bad tournament indeed for fans.” Unmarried straight couples could reportedly face up to seven years in prison if caught.

Related: World Cup soccer player Rebecca Quinn comes out as transgender

“Public displays of affection are frowned upon,” says Nasser al-Khater, the chief executive of the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar. “It’s not part of our culture – and that goes across the board to everybody.”

In a statement, Qatar Supreme Committee for the delivery of the 2022 World Cup said, “Qatar is a conservative…

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