Sepp Blatter
Sepp Blatter first joined Fifa as technical director in 1975 and was voted president in 1998

The decision to award the World Cup to Saudi Arabia was a mistake according to Sepp Blatter.

When the world football's governing body was awarded the tournament in 2010 it was headed by Sepp Blatter.

Same-sex relationships, human rights and treatment of migrant workers have all been criticized by the Gulf state.

"It is too small of a country. Football and the World Cup are too big for it," he told Swiss newspaper Tages Anzeiger.

The first World Cup in the Middle East and the first in the Northern Hemisphere will take place in the month of November and December.

The selection of host countries for the World Cup in 2012 was changed after concerns were raised about the treatment of migrant workers in the Middle East.

Human rights are taken into account since then.

After 17 years as president of Fifa, Sepp Blatter was forced to step down in 2015 due to allegations of wrongdoing.

He was banned from football for eight years and then reduced to six over the payment. He was given an additional ban in March of 2021.

The two men were found not guilty at a trial in Switzerland.

Two investigations were launched by Swiss prosecutors and the US Department of Justice in 2015, following the awarding of the World Cup to Russia and Qatar.

The two countries have always denied any wrongdoing, and both were cleared by the world governing body.

  • How to follow the Fifa World Cup on the BBC