Hungarian Music Festival

My name is Laura and currently I am a volunteer in Kalamata, Greece. I choose this topic, because I am really interested in festivals and I also attended some previously.

This was the most popular topic that I presented to the kids in a high school when I was an Intercultural teacher for 4 months in Morelia, Mexico

Sziget festival was founded in 1993 in Budapest, Hungary and nowdays it became one of the largest festivals in Europe. Every year, the organisers aim to bring the biggest acts to the festival-goers, who will entertain the people with more than 1000 performances on 60 different stages over 6 days.

While both the budget, the international performers’ number and the visitors’ number increased a lot in the last 29 years, the prices of the festival have also increased with a significant amount in the history of the popular music event While in 1993 a daily ticket only cost 300 HUF and they asked 1800 HUF for the weekly pass, by 2019 the price of the daily ticket (26,900HUF) increased by 90 times and the weekly pass (109,990HUF) increased 61 times.

When it started in 1993, it was attended by only 43,000 people, but a year later the festival's popularity soared to 143,000 Last year Sziget ended on Monday 15 August, and although the music festival attracted a large number of visitors, with stars such as Dua Lipa, Justin Bieber, Calvin Harris and Stromae, the festival's attendance did not reach the level it had before the coronavirus epidemic: in 2019, 530,000 people visited the Sziget, but in 2022 it was only 450,000.

2022 World Cup: its controversies and its novelties

Qatar...

...marking the first time the tournament will be held in the Middle East. The tournament started on November 21, 2022 and concluded on December 18, 2022 Qatar beat out the United States, Australia, Japan, and South Korea to win the bid to host the tournament. The country has invested heavily in infrastructure and facilities in preparation for the event, building several new stadiums and upgrading existing ones. The tournament has been played in eight venues across five host cities: Al-Daayen, Al-Khor, Al-Wakrah, Al-Rayyan, and the capital, Doha One of the most notable features of the tournament is the compact nature of the host cities, with all venues located within a radius of just over 30 miles from the capital, Doha

Qatar has also made significant investments in transportation infrastructure, including the construction of a new metro system in Doha and the expansion of the existing airport. These developments should make it easy for fans and teams to travel around the country during the tournament

The tournament has been played in the midst of the Qatari summer, with temperatures typically reaching over 40 degrees Celsius during the day. To combat this, the tournament has been played in airconditioned stadiums, and several cooling technologies have been developed to keep players and fans comfortable. The 2022 World Cup in Qatar was an historic event, not just for the country but also for the region. With modern infrastructure and state-of-the-art facilities, it promises to be a tournament that will be remembered for years to come.

Unfortunately, there have been several disputes and controversies surrounding the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. One major issue is the country's human rights record, with concerns about the treatment of migrant workers who have been brought in to construct the new stadiums and infrastructure for the tournament. There have been reports of poor working conditions, low pay, and limited rights for these workers. Another issue is the country's political climate and its relations with other nations in the region. Qatar has been involved in a diplomatic dispute with several other Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt, which has led to a blockade of the country

This has raised concerns about the safety of fans and teams traveling to Qatar for the tournament Additionally, there are also some voices that are questioning the decision of awarding the tournament to Qatar, considering the small size of the country and the lack of football tradition as well as the limited number of available stadiums, which will require extensive renovation or construction. Finally, there are also questions about the feasibility of the tournament in terms of the number of expected tourists, and the ability of the country to accommodate them all.

Furthermore, there have been calls for a boycott of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar due to the poor working conditions for migrant workers building the infrastructure for the tournament and the country's human rights record more generally. Some organizations and individuals have called for a boycott of the tournament as a way to put pressure on the Qatari government to improve these conditions. There have also been calls for a boycott from countries mentioned above, that are involved in a diplomatic dispute with Qatar. These countries have imposed a blockade on the hosting country, and some have called for their citizens to boycott the tournament as a way to further isolate the country.

However, it is important to note that a boycott would likely have a limited impact on the tournament itself The tournament is organized by FIFA, which is a separate entity from the Qatari government, and it would be difficult to force a boycott of the tournament without the support of FIFA and the participating teams. Also, any decision of this kind would be discussed by the FIFA and the different countries, stakeholders and organizations involved

Additionally, the United Nations (UN) and other international organizations have called for a peaceful resolution to the diplomatic dispute and for the well-being of the migrant workers to be prioritized.

In conclusion, while some organizations and individuals have called for a boycott of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, in reality no major actions have took place during the tournament. The only act for peace during this World Cup has been made by the Italian Mario Ferri, who during the match between Portugal and Uruguay invaded the pitch with an LGBT+ flag and a t shirt asking for peace in Ukraine in one side and on the other a call for respect for Iranian Women It’s surely a remarkable act but in the reality of things, probably it won’t produce any actual changes.

Simone Arrigo