FIFA Urged to Act as Human Rights Watch Flags Migrant Deaths in Saudi Arabia Ahead of 2034 World Cup

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Human Rights Watch (HRW) has issued a stark warning about ongoing abuses on major construction sites in Saudi Arabia, highlighting grave risks for migrant workers involved in preparations for the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

In a statement released Wednesday, the international rights organisation detailed multiple instances of fatal workplace accidents, ranging from falls and electrocution to even decapitations.

"Scores of migrant workers in Saudi Arabia die in gruesome yet avoidable workplace-related accidents," HRW stated. The group, which investigated nearly 50 death cases, said authorities have consistently "failed to adequately protect workers from preventable deaths, investigate workplace safety incidents, and ensure timely and adequate compensation for families."

With Saudi Arabia accelerating its construction projects in the lead-up to the 2034 tournament and other large-scale developments, HRW warned that "the risks of occupational deaths and injuries are further increasing."

Despite winning the bid to host the tournament unopposed at last year's FIFA Congress, Saudi Arabia's human rights record and treatment of migrant labourers have come under renewed scrutiny. FIFA has faced mounting pressure to ensure that the mistakes made during Qatar's controversial 2022 World Cup preparations are not repeated.

HRW said that FIFA has expressed intentions to establish a workers' welfare system with "mandatory standards and enforcement mechanisms" in Saudi Arabia. However, the rights group criticised the lack of transparency and specificity. "FIFA did not provide details on concrete measures to prevent, investigate, and compensate migrant worker deaths such as risk-based heat protection measures or life insurance," HRW noted.

The report also cited statistics suggesting a lack of accountability. Of 1,420 Indian migrant worker deaths registered at the Indian embassy in Riyadh in 2023, 74 percent were reportedly attributed to "natural causes," leaving many cases uninvestigated and uncompensated.

Even in cases officially recognised as work-related, HRW said, compensation is often delayed or denied altogether. "In migrant death cases that are compensated, the process is long and burdensome," the report stated.

A widow of one such worker shared the emotional toll of the delays. "My sons are 11 and 13 years old. When my husband died, they were 11 months and two years old. If we had received compensation right after his death, it would have provided so much relief," she told HRW.

As preparations continue, HRW has urged FIFA to take immediate action to guarantee that all work-related deaths in Saudi Arabia are fully investigated and that families of deceased workers receive just and timely compensation.