Thousands of migrant workers have died since Qatar was awarded to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Read their stories.

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Since Qatar was awarded the 2022 FIFA World Cup, thousands of migrant workers have died. In search for answers, journalism platform Blankspot collected stories directly from their families. We then created Cards of Qatar – a catalogue of football cards that instead of facts about players tell the stories of the workers who never returned.

Read their stories and long form articles highlighting the reality of the situation for the migrant workers who built Qatar. Read more

THE CARDS


Migrant worker
Nepal
In memory of

Som Bahadur Shrestha

1971—2021
Years
of
Age
50
World
Cup
Qatar
22
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
Nepal
In memory of

Som Bahadur Shrestha

1971—2021
Four years ago, Som Bahadur Shrestha started to work as a security guard. – Since then, he did not take a single day off and was never back home, says his daughter Sangita Shrestha. They were planning for his homecoming when they found out he had died in his sleep. – The day before he died, he was shopping for his son's birthday, he bought a watch for our mother and shoes for my brother. When the body arrived at the airport together with the father's belongings, all the presents were gone. – We have tried to contact his employer, but now we have given up, says the daughter.
— told to the journalistic platform Blankspot
FULL STORY
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
India
In memory of

Rada Chinna Ramoji

1980—2021
Years
of
Age
41
World
Cup
Qatar
22
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
India
In memory of

Rada Chinna Ramoji

1980—2021
Throughout the past year, Rada Chinna Ramoji often told his wife Rada Sujatha that they were missing people because of Covid-19. - In January, there was a shortage of manpower and he started working 12-hour shifts, sometimes as much as 16-hours. He was always awake, says Mrs. Rada Sujatha. He often talked to his wife about how hard his job as a cleaner was. He talked about the lack of sleep, and how bad it hurts to have to get up for so long - but he was healthy. Sometime between January 24 and 25, Ramoji died. - I was told that he died of a heart attack in his sleep in the morning, says the widow Rada Sujatha.
— told to the journalistic platform Blankspot
FULL STORY
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
Bangladesh
In memory of

Suhman Miah

1986—2020
Years
of
Age
34
World
Cup
Qatar
22
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
Bangladesh
In memory of

Suhman Miah

1986—2020
At the end of the workday, he fell down outside the construction site where he worked. And was sent to a local hospital where doctor declared him dead. “I could not believe it at first since he was in good health”, says the widow. Sumi Akter is now worried about school fees and the future life of her children: “Daily life is hard.”
— told to the journalistic platform Blankspot
FULL STORY
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
Nepal
In memory of

Manjur Kha Pathan

1981—2021
Years
of
Age
40
World
Cup
Qatar
22
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
Nepal
In memory of

Manjur Kha Pathan

1981—2021
Manjur Kha Pathan from Nepal died in Qatar on February 9, 2021, at the age of 40 years. His death certificate issued states that the heart disease was “unspecified” and it does not provide information about the underlying causes. His brother Ahmed Hussain told Amnesty International that Manjur worked as a truck driver and that he was healthy. They often talked about his job, and he complained about long working days, the heat and that the air conditioning in the truck was often broken. But he never complained about his health. Because he died at home and not at work, the case is not covered by the compensation laws in Qatar.
— told to the journalistic platform Blankspot
FULL STORY
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
India
In memory of

Bolumalla Gangadhar

1969—2019
Years
of
Age
50
World
Cup
Qatar
22
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
India
In memory of

Bolumalla Gangadhar

1969—2019
One morning in October 2019, while Bolumalla Gangadhar was in a holiday in India, he screamed in agony in the bathroom. - It was a heart attack, but no one in our family has had heart problems before, says his son Kiran. Even though it has been a while now since the father died during the holiday at home in India, Kiran cannot let go of what happened. How could a completely healthy and fit man suddenly die from a heart attack? - He never said anything about his job. Not even what he did. He only repeated this mantra: "Do not come here. You do not know what it is like here, and you do not want to know it either”.
— told to the journalistic platform Blankspot
FULL STORY
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
Nepal
In memory of

Ghal Singh Rai

1999—2019
Years
of
Age
20
World
Cup
Qatar
22
cardsofqatar.com
Migrant worker
Nepal
In memory of

Ghal Singh Rai

1999—2019
Ghal Singh Rai worked as a cleaner in one of the camps where those who built Qatar's football stadiums lived. His family had paid $ 1,300 to a recruiting firm to get the job. But after just one week, he took his own life in October 2019. His colleagues in Qatar said he had hung himself from the ceiling fan. - There is a wound in his neck, but we have never received any further explanations. We have to believe what they tell us, says his father Saarki Bahadur Rai. The father often told the son not to worry. - I always told him to come home if he cannot live in Qatar. I told him that over and over again.
— told to the journalistic platform Blankspot
FULL STORY
cardsofqatar.com

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