A history of World Cup sportswashing, from Il Duce to Infantino – in pictures

A postcard promoting the second Fifa World Cup in 1934. It was hosted by Italy, which was under the rule of the fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.

Brazil and Spain contest a round-of-16 match in Genoa, won 3-1 by Spain. The tournament used a knockout format with the last eight made up entirely of European sides.

Italian players give a fascist salute before the 1934 World Cup final, held on 10 June at the Stadio Nazionale PNF (Stadium of the Fascist Party) in Rome.

Italy beat Czechoslovakia 2-1 in the final after extra time, with Angelo Schiavo scoring the winner. Here, manager Vittorio Pozzo is hoisted in the air by his team.

The official poster for the 1978 World Cup in Argentina. The South American country was under a military dictatorship after the 1976 coup against Isabel Perón.

A protest in Paris calling on European nations to boycott the tournament. The banner cites reports of detention centres located within a mile of host stadiums in Buenos Aires.

Members of the Argentinian junta line up for the opening ceremony, including its leader, General Videla (third left).

Soldiers get heavy handed with fans queuing for tickets. The junta waged a ‘Dirty War’ during its time in power, with tens of thousands of political opponents killed or disappeared.

The Netherlands had considered boycotting the tournament, but made it the final where they lost 3-1 to the hosts at the Estadio Monumental. Mario Kempes, the star of the tournament, is seen celebrating after putting Argentina ahead in extra time with his second goal of the game.

General Videla waits to award the trophy. The hosts’ 6-0 victory over Peru, which ensured they reached the final instead of Brazil, remains one of the most controversial results in World Cup history. The Argentinian journalist Ezequiel Fernández Moores has described the 1978 World Cup as “the most obvious political manipulation suffered by sport since the 1936 Olympics in Nazi Germany”.

The Mothers of Plaza de Mayo, a human rights organisation committed to find justice for the victims of the ‘Dirty War’, hold up a banner commemorating the disappeared in 2008, on the 30th anniversary of Argentina’s 1978 World Cup victory.

In December 2010, Fifa awarded the World Cups of 2018 and 2022 to Russia and Qatar respectively in a day that reshaped modern football. Here, World Cup winners Gordon Banks, Diego Maradona, Pelé and Fabio Cannavaro join the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, at the Kremlin in Moscow for the group stage draw in 2027.

A Ukrainian serviceman kicks a ball at an effigy of Putin in Kyiv. In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea and hostilities increased between the two nations in the lead-up to the World Cup, leading to Ukrainian calls for a boycott.

Putin is cheered on by the Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, during an exhibition game in Moscow to mark the start of the tournament.

The World Cup begins with Russia playing Saudi Arabia (and winning 5-0) at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium. Infantino, Putin and the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, are spotted enjoying each other’s company in the executive seats.

Olga Kurachyova, a member of the Russian protest group Pussy Riot, invades the pitch and high-fives Kylian Mbappé during the 2018 final, in which France beat Croatia 4-2.

Infantino and Putin are pictured side by side again as they prepare to award the World Cup trophy to France. Putin had been re-elected as Russia’s president earlier in 2018, amid allegations of electoral fraud.

Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, then the emir of Qatar, is handed the World Cup by the Fifa president Sepp Blatter in 2010. Blatter would later claim Qatar was ‘too small’ to host the tournament, and blamed the vote outcome on the former Uefa president Michel Platini.

‘Qatar: switch off!’ Dortmund fans hold up banners calling for fans to boycott the upcoming World Cup in November 2022. The Gulf state’s human rights record and outlawing of same-sex relationships were two issues under the spotlight.

The Germany team line up before a game, covering their mouths in protest at Fifa’s ban on rainbow armbands at the tournament.

A protester on the pitch with rainbow flag and ‘Save Ukraine’ T-shirt during a group match between Portugal and Uruguay. The 2022 World Cup was the first played in a European winter, interrupting the domestic season.

Thani and Infantino dress Lionel Messi in a bisht – a traditional Qatari cape – after Argentina won the final against France on penalties.

An artist’s impression of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman Stadium, which Saudi Arabia plans to build on a cliff at Qiddiya, near Riyadh. It is one of 11 new stadiums planned for the event, which human rights groups fear will lead to “severe and widespread rights violations” for migrant workers in Saudi Arabia.

The Aramco Stadium in Khobar is another new venue set to be built for the 2034 World Cup. The impending award of the world’s biggest football tournament to Saudi Arabia has raised questions about the bidding process and the country’s human rights record.