For 27 years, the iconic “Lotta” pub in Cologne has been a place of great footballing emotions. When the local club FC Koeln won with a goal scored in extra time, the whole place exploded, even strangers, drunk with victory, fell into each other’s arms and the Koelsch beer flowed.

Also, when the German national team played, “Lotta” with two TVs and a big screen attracted dozens of football fans. The great collective joy after Mario Goetze’s goal in the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina remains unforgettable.

So a lot must have happened before pub co-owner Peter Zimmermann, a football fanatic, made the decision that many landlords in Germany are making these days and weeks: TVs will be switched off in protest while throughout the FIFA World Cup. in Qatar from November 20 to December 18.

“We want to express our opposition to this completely corrupt FIFA system where everything is really about money and where human rights and football culture are completely indifferent. Qatar is the culmination of this: discrimination against women and homosexuals and dire working conditions, says Peter Zimmermann.

A competitive advertising program in Cologne

When the first whistle of the World Cup opener between Qatar and Ecuador sounds on Sunday at 5 p.m., “Lotta” will still be closed. On Monday evening, when the United States meet Wales, the guests will play a traditional non-football quiz. And on Tuesday, when France take on Australia, there will be a panel discussion in the pub on the situation in Qatar, FIFA policy and the boycott. Then there will be darts tournaments, film screenings and a console World Cup match. News of the protest in the “Lotta” pub went around the world; even a Japanese television crew visited the premises south of Cologne.

“The closer we got to the championship, the clearer it became that Qatar was the last straw to break the camel’s back, and we didn’t want to support that,” says Peter Zimmermann. In April, we officially announced the boycott and displayed a banner with the slogan: “Boycott Qatar”. “Reactions were positive from the start, even though we were in the minority at the time,” adds the pub owner.

No euphoria in Germany

Sam Zimmernann, for the first time in his life, does not know the World Cup schedule by heart. Previously, this would have been unthinkable. In the meantime, everywhere in Germany, one can have the impression that it is not a world championship that is approaching, but a tournament of “plastic clubs” from Hoffenheim, Leipzig or Wolfsburg, which have no tradition , but rich sponsors.

Enthusiasm for the World Cup in Qatar is limited: you don’t see cars with little German flags, you don’t exchange football cards, you don’t make bets in offices. And because the championships take place at the turn of fall and winter, there are no outdoor broadcasts either.

German sports channels Intersport and Sport2000 complain that so far sales of World Cup shirts are 50% lower than they were before the championships four years ago. And according to a recent poll by dimap, more than half of Germans plan to skip the FIFA World Cup in Qatar altogether.

In turn, “Lotta” systematically removes from its offer all beer bottles with the logo of the FIFA World Cup. Sometimes there are one or two critical comments on Instagram or in an email accusing the owners of being hypocritical and ready to heat the pub with gas from Qatar.

But Peter Zimmermann doesn’t regret for a moment making the pub a FIFA-free zone – even though sales are sure to suffer over the next four weeks due to the boycott. “Of course the World Cup is always good for business, especially when Germany are playing. But we have our regulars and I hope our alternative program will also attract other people who say: we love football, but it’s too much with Qatar – adds the owner of “Lotta”.

Borussia Dortmund fans call at the stadium for a boycott of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar

Protests in German stadiums

This Tuesday, Lotta will also welcome the author of numerous football books, Dietrich Schulze-Marmeling. Not as a guest, but as a speaker. He is a kind of team captain of the protest movement. The hardcore Borussia Dortmund fan started the #boycottqatar2022 initiative two years ago and even wrote a book about the controversy in Qatar and why the World Cup shouldn’t be held there.

– I have been surprised by the scope and scale of the protests in recent weeks, especially from fans during the last three days of Bundesliga games. I think it was built over the years and for many Qatar was even more incomprehensible than the Russian championship. Many people have said that Russia is at least a great country with some football tradition. But Qatar, with its 350,000 citizens, is simply an absurd choice to host the World Cup for many, Judge Dietrich Schulze-Marmeling.

Germany a moral winner?

“Santa Claus instead of Adidas, gingerbread instead of FIFA” – this is the slogan of the boycott initiative. Everyone who joins the call should send protest letters to FIFA, not buy products with the World Cup logo, and above all refrain from traveling to Qatar and avoiding public screenings. in Germany. The goal of Schulze-Marmeling and his companions seems noble: presenting the World Cup in this “perverse” way and further ruining football can no longer pay off. Can he still understand people who finally turn on the TV?

Dietrich Schulze-Marmeling, author of the book “Boycott Qatar 2022”

– I do not condemn anyone, and I even understand that. And will those who now say they won’t watch really stay there while the Germans behave admirably? However, it is important not to give up a critical look at the tournament. The debate must continue during the tournament and the media must know that criticism cannot be ignored. We need a discussion on how we want to shape the future of football.

According to him, Germany in particular deserves praise with its critical supporters, who often denounce racism, homophobia and the growing influence of investors on football. For fans from many countries participating in the championship, the human rights situation in Qatar and corruption within FIFA play almost no role. Royal football overshadows everything.

The mockers are already saying that the Germans will be world champions, at least in terms of morality. But Schulze-Marmeling cares little for mockery. – We can be proud that the subject of human rights is of particular importance in Germany. To the accusation that we live in our German bubble, I always reply: “Sorry, in other countries too they are starting to think differently and look with some admiration at what is happening here,” he says. And he adds that especially from England come many questions about how the protests were provoked and requests for help to develop a similar initiative.

Do you want to comment on this article? Do it on Facebook! >>