The international players' union has called on 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar to respect workers' rights following a report in a UK-based daily The Guardian that dozens of migrant Nepalese workers have died in recent weeks in the Gulf state.
FIFPro, which represents around 50,000 professional footballers worldwide through its national affiliates, said that independent experts must be allowed to inspect worksites and ensure international labour standards are adhered to.
"Qatar must respect the rights of the key people who will deliver the 2022 World Cup: the workers who build the World Cup stadia and infrastructure and the professional footballers who play in them," FIFPro said in a statement on Friday.
"FIFPro... calls on the international football community to act with solidarity to ensure that the 2022 World Cup in Qatar is only delivered in accordance with football's universal values as set out in the statutes of (soccer's governing body) FIFA."
Published 27 September 2013, 17:00 IST