GENEVA: FIFA has fined Qatar’s soccer federation after national team players breached rules against political statements by displaying T-shirts of the country’s Emir at a World Cup qualifier.
FIFA said Thursday its disciplinary panel imposed a 50,000 Swiss francs ($51,800) fine and reprimanded Qatar, the 2022 World Cup host.
The charges related to “displaying a political image” and “political displays” by fans at a 3-2 win over South Korea in Doha, FIFA said.
Qatar player Hasan Alhaydos was also fined 5,000 Swiss francs ($5,180) for unsporting unbehavior.
The incidents happened on June 13, amid a dispute with regional rivals Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates which have sought to isolate Qatar.
Qatar’s players warmed up for the game wearing white T-shirts with an image of Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to show their support for him.
Fans in the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium also wore and displayed images of the Emir.
After Alhaydos scored the opening goal, he took a T-shirt from a spectator and lifted it high in the air.
In other FIFA decisions announced Thursday, a range of sanctions was imposed on host Bosnia-Herzegovina and Greece after a volatile end to a World Cup qualifier in June.
Trouble flared between players and coaching staffs who were charged with offensive behavior after the final whistle of a 0-0 draw in Zenica.
Bosnia’s assistant coach Stephane Gilli was handed a six-month suspension from matches after punching a Greece player in the face. Gilli said on his verified Twitter account this month that his contract has been canceled.
Muhamed Besic, the Everton midfielder, was fined 5,000 Swiss francs ($5,180) and banned for one match. He will miss Bosnia’s Aug. 31 game at Cyprus.
Bosnia forward Edin Dzeko’s clash with Kostas Manolas of Greece seemed to start the dispute. The Roma teammates were each fined 2,500 Swiss francs ($2,590).
FIFA banned Bosnia from using the Zenica stadium for one match and imposed a fine of 30,000 Swiss francs ($31,150) for a range of charges, including booing the Greek national anthem before the game.
Serbia’s federation was fined 22,500 Swiss francs ($23,400) for fans’ political chants and banners at a home qualifier against Wales.
FIFA again acted against Mexico for a long-standing problem with its fans chanting gay slurs at opposing teams’ goalkeepers. Fines of 10,000 Swiss francs ($10,400) were imposed for incidents at each of Mexico’s home qualifiers in June against Honduras and the United States.
FIFA fines Qatar after players’ political support for Emir
FIFA fines Qatar after players’ political support for Emir
Trump claims Iran working on missiles that could hit US
- Trump says his preference is diplomacy, but would never allow Tehran to have a nuclear weapon
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday claimed Iran is seeking to develop missiles that can strike the United States and accused Tehran of working to rebuild a nuclear program that was targeted by American strikes last year.
The United States and Iran are engaged in high-stakes negotiations over Iran’s atomic program and other issues including missiles, with Trump saying he prefers diplomacy but is willing to use force if talks fail.
“They’ve already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they’re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America,” Trump said during his State of the Union address.
In 2025, the US Defense Intelligence Agency said Iran could potentially develop a militarily viable intercontinental ballistic missile by 2035 “should Tehran decide to pursue the capability,” but did not say if it had made such a decision.
Tehran currently possesses short- and medium-range ballistic missiles with ranges that top out at about 1,850 miles (3,000 kilometers), according to the US Congressional Research Service.
The continental United States is more than 6,000 miles from Iran’s western tip.
Washington and Tehran have concluded two rounds of talks aimed at reaching a deal on Iran’s nuclear program to replace the agreement that Trump tore up during his first term in office.
‘Preference’ is diplomacy
The United States has repeatedly called for zero uranium enrichment by Iran but has also sought to address its ballistic missile program and support for armed groups in the region — demands Iran has rejected.
Iran has also repeatedly rejected that it is pursuing nuclear weapons.
Trump ordered strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites last year, claiming afterward that Tehran’s atomic program was obliterated.
On Tuesday, he said Iran wants “to start all over again,” and that it is “at this moment again pursuing their sinister nuclear ambitions.”
Trump has sent a massive US military force to the Middle East, deploying two aircraft carriers as well as more than a dozen other ships, a large number of warplanes and other assets to the region.
He has repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if negotiations fail to reach a new agreement. Talks with Tehran are currently set to continue on Thursday.
“My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy but one thing is certain: I will never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
The US president’s speech primarily focused on domestic issues, making no mention at all of China — Washington’s primary military and economic rival — and only briefly referring to Russia.
Trump said he was working to end the bloody conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and repeated his inaccurate claim that he had brought eight other wars to an end since returning to office in January 2025.
He also hailed NATO’s decision to spend five percent of gross domestic product on defense — a move made under heavy pressure from Trump and his administration.
