Why is the Qatar World Cup controversial? What to know about LGBTQ issues, heat and booze.

Qatar is smaller than Connecticut and, even counting expats, its population of 2.7 million is about the same as the city of Chicago. What Qatar lacks in size and might, it makes up for in money from oil and natural gas. Which came in handy when Qatari organizers were trying to convince FIFA members of their vision for the first World Cup in the Middle East.

Its government has been accused of a laundry list of human rights abuses, including the exploitation and deaths of migrant construction workers and oppression of women and the LGBTQ+ community.

Its choice as World Cup host was, former FIFA president Sepp Blatter said last week, “a mistake.”

“(Qatar) is too small a country. Football and the World Cup are too big for it,” Blatter said.

Will there be protests during the World Cup about the treatment of migrant workers?

Yes.

Qatar has been criticized – rightly – for exploiting the migrant workers who built the gleaming new stadiums, hotels and infrastructure necessary to host the World Cup. Qatar will say conditions have improved, and even human rights and labor organizations agree there has been progress.

The kafala system that bound workers to their employers, preventing them from leaving the country or even switching jobs, has been abolished, and there are now minimum standards for wages and working conditions, and penalties if they aren’t met.

But human rights groups also say enforcement of the reforms is lax and workers are still being subjected to abuse. Qatar is resisting – mightily – a compensation fund for workers who were harmed working on World Cup projects and the families of those who died.

FIFA desperately wants to divert attention from Qatar’s human rights issues during the tournament, and earlier this month sent a letter to the 32 teams urging them to “focus on the football.”

“Please do not allow football to be dragged into every ideological or political battle that exists,” read the letter, signed by FIFA president Gianni Infantino and secretary general Fatma Samoura.

Teams are having none of it, however.

Australia’s Socceroos released a 3-minute video last month calling for the establishment of a Migrant Resource Center, remedies for those denied their rights and the decriminalization of same-sex relationships. The UEFA Working Group has actively pushed Qatar and FIFA for more progress on human rights, and the United States supports those efforts.

Denmark’s monochromatic jerseys, with the team’s logo barely noticeable, were designed to be a visible protest. Captains of 10 European teams, including England’s Harry Kane and Wales’ Gareth Bale, will wear a “OneLove” armband to promote diversity and inclusion.

The Danes also asked permission to wear "Human rights for all" T-shirts during training. FIFA said no.

“We didn’t put the World Cup in Qatar, FIFA chose to do that,” U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter said. “If by us participating, and other teams participating, we can make a change for the better, I think we should use this opportunity.”

Can you drink alcohol in Qatar at the World Cup?

Only at the Fan Fest. And just wait, that’ll probably change, too!

Alcohol isn’t illegal in Qatar, but you can’t drink in public and being drunk in public is a crime. At any other time, the only place to get a drink is at a licensed hotel or restaurant.

But Budweiser is one of FIFA’s biggest sponsors, paying many, many, MANY millions to be the official – read: only – beer provider at the World Cup. Qatari organizers promised when they were bidding, and again after they were awarded the World Cup, that they wouldn’t interfere with FIFA’s commercial partnerships or impose local customs on the tournament.

That must have been a pinky swear, though. The initial compromise was that beer would be sold before and after the games within the stadium perimeter but only non-alcoholic beer would be sold in the stadium concourse. Then came word last week that Qatari officials were uncomfortable with alcoholic beverages having such a prominent presence and had asked for sales points to be moved to a less-visible place. 

On Friday, a mere two days before a tournament 12 years in the planning begins, FIFA announced that beer wouldn’t be sold at the stadiums after all. 

“Following discussions between host country authorities and FIFA, a decision has been made to focus the sale of alcoholic beverages on the FIFA Fan Festival, other fan destinations and licensed venues, removing sales points of beer from Qatar’s FIFA World Cup 2022 stadium perimeters,” FIFA said in a statement. 

High rollers in suites are exempt, of course. 

Beer at the Fan Fest, located at a waterfront park, will be available after 7 pm. For now. 

How will LGBTQ+ people be treated in a country where homosexuality remains illegal?

Qatar officials have insisted LGBTQ+ people will be safe during the World Cup, with the emir telling the United Nations General Assembly in September that his country would welcome fans “without discrimination.”

“Our duty is to overcome obstacles, extend a hand of friendship, build bridges of understanding and celebrate our common humanity,” Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said in his speech.

Nasser Al-Khater, the CEO of Qatar’s Supreme Committee, echoed that last month, saying gay fans would be able to walk hand in hand without repercussions and rainbow flags would be allowed.

But concerns remain that the emir and Al-Khater’s assurances are hollow promises.

“It’s not matched with evidence or documented plans. There’s no sign of any kind of appetite to relax or review the toxic environment there is,” said Di Cunningham, co-founder of Three Lions Pride, a group for England’s LGBTQ+ fans.

Human Rights Watch reported last month that, since 2019, at least six LGBTQ+ people have been arrested and abused while in custody, with the most recent incident occurring in September. Last week, Khalid Salman, a former Qatar player who is now a World Cup ambassador, called homosexuality “damage in the mind.”

Even if LGBTQ+ fans don’t encounter issues in Qatar, the country’s laws haven’t changed. When the World Cup ends, LGBTQ+ people living in Qatar will continue to be persecuted.

“It sets a precedent, especially to my community, that we don’t matter. Or that we’re a secondary thought,” said Thomas Beattie, who came out as gay after playing professionally in Canada and Singapore.

“Awarding (Qatar) the privilege of hosting a global sporting event … is really damaging to my community.”

How hot is it in Qatar?                                                                                          

Not as bad as it would have been in June, when Qatar hit 118 degrees one day!

The average high temperatures in November and December are in the mid-70s, with lows around 60. The USMNT’s group-stage games all start at 10 p.m. local (2 p.m. ET), making for optimal conditions for both players and fans.

“The only time (heat) may be a factor is during some of the training sessions, when it could be in the upper 80s,” Berhalter said. “It could be a swing from what guys are used to (in Europe), but we’ve been playing in very difficult conditions. This summer we played in over 90-degree heat and high humidity. So we’ll be OK.”

What did Qatar do for the World Cup?

So how, exactly, did this tiny Gulf nation wind up at the center of the international spotlight as host of the World Cup, the planet’s most popular sporting event?

Politics and money. Mostly money.

It’s easy to see why Qatar wanted the World Cup, which will be played at eight stadiums from Nov. 20 to Dec. 18.  Watched the world over, the tournament will raise Qatar’s international profile as both a tourist destination and a place to do business.

That’s particularly appealing as Qatar and other Gulf nations try to diversify their economies from fossil fuels, said Kristin Diwan, a senior scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. 

“It is committed to (sports) as a leg of diversification,” Diwan said.

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It also provides Qatar with a measure of security.

Qatar shares a border with Saudi Arabia and is across the Persian Gulf from Iran, each of which is larger, more powerful and prone to making trouble in the region. Iraq, Syria and Yemen, regional hotspots, aren’t far away.

“Soft power is part of their defense strategy,” said James Dorsey, senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University. “They need to be relevant to the international community to the degree that the international community would care … (and) come to their aid.”

Or at least ensure larger, more powerful countries are motivated to protect their interests in Qatar, said Simon Chadwick, a professor of sport and geopolitical economy at the Skema Business School in Paris.

“It has created an interdependence with other countries, important allies. If you’re talking about the United States, Sheraton is there, Hilton is there, McDonald’s is there. There now are U.S. investments in Qatar,” said Chadwick, who authored the report “Qatar’s Hosting of the FIFA Men’s World Cup: The Issues and Challenges Ahead” for the Skema Publica think tank.

“In simple terms, there is a reason now for the United States to protect Qatar because the United States has a lot of inward investments in Qatar.”

Qatari organizers have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. But Qatar’s bid was so preposterous, and FIFA’s leaders so morally bankrupt, that bribery was the only logical explanation for the country being awarded the 2022 World Cup over the United States in 2010.

In 2014, England’s Sunday Times reported that Mohamed bin Hammam, who rose from the head of Qatar’s soccer federation to FIFA’s executive committee, had doled out $5 million to FIFA officials to win support for Qatar. Six years later, the U.S. Department of Justice said in court filings that three South American soccer officials had accepted bribes in exchange for voting for Qatar.

By that point, however, FIFA had already cleared Qatar of wrongdoing, ending any chance it would be stripped of the World Cup.

Can Qatar accommodate World Cup fans?  

Yes. And no.

Qatar insists it has room for the estimated 1.5 million visitors – even if it does mean putting some up on cruise ships and in tents and cabins. It’s also built a new subway system and expanded roadways, and is imposing limits on residents to curtail traffic and congestion.

But the compactness of the tournament is going to come at the expense of the festive, free-for-all vibe that makes the World Cup so much fun.

Because of alcohol restrictions and the expense and scarcity of accommodations, some fans are opting to stay outside of Qatar and fly in on gamedays. Organizers also said initially that only people with match tickets were going to be allowed into the country during the World Cup.

So much for the fans who merrily meander the country with their faces painted and flags wrapped around their shoulders, hoping to find an extra ticket but, if not, content to simply soak up the atmosphere.

Qatar has since changed course, announcing on Nov. 7 that fans without tickets will be allowed beginning Dec. 2, the end of the group stage. That assumes they’ll be able to find flights and places to stay, however.

Is Qatar participating in the World Cup?

Qatar has never qualified for the World Cup, and its best players play in the domestic league rather than the big clubs of Europe. Or small clubs of Europe, for that matter. But the host country receives entry to the tournament. Qatar opens with Ecuador on Nov. 20.

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour.