FIFA is accused of going back on its promise to ensure the safety of workers on World Cup-related projects, as it refused to allow inspectors to assess the conditions inside Mexico’s Azteca Stadium.
Representatives from the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI) trade union stated that they were informed, just before their planned visit, that they would not be granted access to the 80,000-capacity Azteca Stadium. The stadium is currently being renovated in preparation for the 2026 World Cup.
The BWI says there has been an oversight of labour conditions on World Cup projects in Mexico, with a lot of information kept hidden. The union also claims that FIFA had agreed to joint inspections in the three host countries– Mexico, the US, and Canada– but pulled out before the deal was finalised.
Ambet Yuson, the general secretary of the BWI, said that FIFA was “dodging its responsibility” to workers and that the global football governing body had failed to address human rights issues raised during recent tournaments.
Yuson stated: “Fifa keeps promising the world a spectacle while dodging its responsibility to the very workers making it possible… They learned nothing from Qatar and Russia. No more excuses. No more delays. Fifa must act now, or North America 2026 Fifa World Cup will be another case of broken promises and neglected workers.”
However, FIFA says in its human rights policy that it “strives to uphold and promote the highest international labour standards” and that it “seeks to ensure respect for labour standards by its business partners and in the various activities directly linked to its operations”.
A FIFA spokesperson said: “The Azteca Stadium and its construction process is not managed by Fifa. However, in line with its human rights policy, Fifa strives to respect and promote the highest international labour standards and seeks to ensure that the rights of workers in the various activities directly related to its operations are upheld…. Fifa, through its local team and in close cooperation with the Azteca Stadium, is actively engaging with stakeholders and monitoring the conditions offered to the workers. As part of that, the labour rights protections on site are supervised by a local union, the Confederación Autónoma de Trabajadores y Empleados de México (CATEM). In addition, the work to ensure compliance with labour standards also includes engagement with the Mexican Chamber of the Construction Industry (CMIC). Workers’ rights and compliance with national and international labour requirements is of the utmost importance to Fifa. We will continue to be in close contact with our Mexican office and partners in that respect.”