Title: Social sustainability with a global impact: the case of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar

Authors: Sam Toglaw; Oualid Abidi; Andri Ottesen; Osama Al Kwifi

Addresses: Business Administration Department, College of Business Administration, Gulf University for Science and Technology, Kuwait ' College of Business, Australian University, Kuwait ' College of Business, Australian University, Kuwait ' Department of Management and Marketing, College of Business and Economics, Qatar University, Qatar

Abstract: Despite facing considerable challenges, the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar serves as a distinctive case study for implementing sustainable strategies with significant global social impact. This study takes the social justice theory as a framework and utilises in-depth interviews in addition to a thorough examination of the tournament activities and sustainable strategies to explore the effect of the Middle Eastern context on the post tournament social impact. In addition, it investigates the factors that influenced people's perceptions of social sustainability. The study reveals strong evidence that human empowerment, particularly of women and people with disabilities, had positively shaped social sustainability perceptions. Furthermore, the Middle Eastern context enhanced global social impact through factors such as local traditions, the Qatari culture of hospitality, altruism, and philanthropy. The study has important implications for future tournaments by providing actionable strategies to develop a global sustainable social impact.

Keywords: social sustainability; sustainable strategy; UN Sustainable Development Goals; triple bottom line; TBL; FIFA World Cup; Qatar 2022.

DOI: 10.1504/JIBED.2025.152827

Journal for International Business and Entrepreneurship Development, 2025 Vol.17 No.4, pp.487 - 511

Received: 19 Jul 2025
Accepted: 08 Sep 2025
Published online: 13 Apr 2026 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article