FIFA Responds To Damning Report About Working Conditions In Qatar

FIFA says it is "fully aware" of working conditions in Qatar leading up to the 2022 World Cup. 

On Thursday, FIFA responded to a damning report by human rights watch group Amnesty International, which read, in part, "The abuse of migrant workers is a stain on the conscience of world football." 

The Amnesty International report was condemning alleged migrant worker abuses at World Cup construction sites. 

One FIFA official said in a statement, "Many challenges remain, but we are on the right track and committed to continue improving, to further contribute to the protection of workers' rights." 

"You cannot have a major sporting event like the World Cup, the world's largest sporting event, happening based and completely built on daily exploitation. That's simply unacceptable," Amnesty International's Secretary General Salil Shetty told Press TV.

The working conditions in Qatar have been criticized ever since the oil-rich country won the bid to host the 2022 World Cup. 

"You live in a room with eight, 10, 12 other men. The cooking facilities are absolutely unhygienic. ... It's a life of squalor. You are trapped in Qatar," International Trade Union Confederation's Sharan Burrow told ESPN.

In 2010, when the country won the 2022 World Cup bid, Qatar said it intended to spend $200 billion in preparation. Officials said multiple stadiums, hotels and transportation outlets would be built. 

While the exact migrant worker death toll due to World Cup construction is tough to come by, both The Guardian and The Washington Post suggest worker deaths have skyrocketed since construction began. 

This video includes clips from United Media Center and images from Getty Images.