Organizers for the World Cup in Qatar are paying some groups of fans for good PR. Reuters reports that tournament officials will be compensating travel for certain people to the Middle Eastern country in exchange for positive social media posts about the tournament.

In exchange for free travel and hotel expenses, influencers signed a code of conduct to promote the tournament. This includes incorporating the World Cup into social media posts and re-sharing other positive comments.

The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy confirmed these reports on Monday. This committee essentially helped organize the World Cup in Qatar. This includes building infrastructure, supplying transportation, and the organization of events surrounding the competition.

“As the tournament nears, we have invited our most active fan leaders to personally nominate a small selection of fans to join us as our guests, as a manner of thanking them for their collaboration,” a Supreme Committee spokesperson told Reuters.

World Cup social media avoiding negative PR

Also, committee members told fan leaders to report any abusive or offensive comments. Fan leaders screenshot the negative PR to have proof of any incidents.

According to organizers, the Fan Leader program consists of more than 400 people from 60 nations around the world. These influencers have also attended workshops involving the tournament and are in place to help promote the World Cup.

“Our fan leaders are playing a crucial role in engaging with supporters who are planning to come to Qatar for the FIFA World Cup, and in providing us with invaluable feedback on a variety of queries and topics related to the tournament and the host country,” said Haya Al Kuwari, Fan Engagement Lead for the committee.

“Their passion and enthusiasm for Qatar 2022 has been inspirational and an important contribution to helping our build-up to the greatest show on Earth in November and December.”

The World Cup kicks off on November 20th, as hosts Qatar face Ecuador in the opening match.

PHOTO: IMAGO / NurPhoto

Guide to World Cup 2022

Here are some resources to help you get the most out of the biggest event in soccer!
TV Schedule: All the info on where and when to watch every game
The Groups: We breakdown each group and all the teams
The Kits: Check out what every team will be wearing on the field this fall
Predictor: Play out every scenario with our World Cup Predictor
World Cup Bracket: Map out the entire tournament, from the groups to the final