A graphic containing the text "Qatar welcomes you", and a series of signs purporting to show acts that are to be prohibited for visitors during the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar, is viral on the internet.
According to this graphic, the acts that are to be avoided are drinking alcohol, homosexuality, immodesty, profanity, disrespect to places of worship, loud music and sounds, dating, and taking people's pictures without their permission.
BOOM found that this graphic is fake, and that no such disclaimer has been given by the organisers. The veracity of the graphic was refuted by the the official Twitter handle for FIFA 2022 who wrote, "The 'Qatar Welcomes You' graphic circulating on social media is not from an official source and contains factually incorrect information."
A 'cultural awareness' disclaimer on the official website of the tournament further refuted the claims regarding prohibition of certain acts mentioned in the graphic by providing some guiding rules for tourists. According to the disclaimer, alcohol will be allowed at designated spots, and people can wear clothing of their choice, but have to practice modesty while visiting public places. It also mentions that visitors can wear swimwear at hotel beaches and pools, but cannot remove their shirts at the stadium. While there is no mention of prohibition of dating, visitors are advised to not display affection publicly as it is not part of local culture.
False Claim Viral
Many users had shared the graphic on Facebook and Twitter with the caption 'Qatar welcomes you', while taking a dig at the host nation for the next football world cup for being too conservative.
Click here to see the above post. Similar posts can be found here, here, and here.
We also found this graphic going viral on Twitter.