Dua Lipa Shoots Down World Cup Performance Rumors
Wrong place, wrong time?
It's been widely speculated that singer and songwriter Dua Lipa would be performing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. "Shakira gets ready for her World Cup Comeback on November 20 at the Fifa World Cup 2022 opening ceremony at the Al-Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar with BTS, Black Eyed Peas, Dua Lipa, J Balvin, Bollywood Star Nora Fatehi & Nigerian singing sensation Patrick Nnaemeka Okorie!" a Twitter account by the name of World Music Awards announced, per Sports Tiger in a since-deleted tweet.
Alas, the "Don't Start Now" singer didn't appear to take to the speculation too kindly. On November 13, she took to her Instagram to dispel any rumors regarding the notion that she would be performing at the famous football competition. But why exactly? Let's just say it has nothing to do with the sporting event itself and everything to do with where it's being held.
Dua Lipa will only visit Qatar after they have 'fulfilled all the human rights pledges' they made
Dua Lipa DGAF.
"There is a lot of speculation that I will be performing at the opening ceremony of the World Cup in Qatar," the "Levitating" crooner began in a lengthy post on her Instagram Story, per TMZ. "I will not be performing and nor have I ever been involved in any negotiation to perform," she declared. "I will be cheering England on from afar and I look forward to visiting Qatar when it has fulfilled all the human rights pledges it made when it won the right to host the World Cup," she concluded.
As you may recall, there has been a lot of controversy surrounding FIFA's decision to allow Qatar to host the event — namely due to their treatment of migrant workers, women, and those who belong to the LGBT+ community. "We stand for inclusivity as a team – that's been the big driver of a lot of the stances we've taken in the last couple of years – and it would be horrible to think some of our fans feel they can't go because they feel threatened or they're worried about their safety, England's manager Gareth Southgate lamented about FIFA's decision to hold the World Cup in Qatar, per The Guardian.