Human rights groups are warning of a "surge" of deaths of migrant construction workers in Saudi Arabia, as it prepares to host the World Cup in 2034.
Labourers are already dying from preventable workplace accidents in the country, according to Human Rights Watch and FairSquare which have both published reports today.
Many such deaths are wrongly classified as having occurred due to natural causes and the families of workers are not compensated, the reports say.
Both groups have called on the Saudi Authorities to ensure basic safety protections for the country's huge migrant work-force.
"The 2034 Saudi World Cup will be the largest and most expensive ever, but it could also have the highest cost in human lives, as millions of migrant workers build infrastructure, including 11 new stadiums, a rail and transit network, and 185,000 hotel rooms," Minky Worden, director of Global Initiatives at Human Rights Watch, said.
The warnings come a day after the President of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, visited the country along with Donald Trump – attending a US-Saudi investment forum.
FIFA – football's global governing body – says it has a "steadfast commitment to the protection and promotion of human rights in the context of its operations."
But Human Rights Watch has accused FIFA of failing to learn lessons from migrant worker deaths in the lead-up to the World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
Data on migrant deaths is hard to come by in a country where human rights groups have very limited access and labour unions are banned.
But Human Rights Watch interviewed the families of 31 workers from Bangladesh, India and Nepal who fell from heights, were crushed or decapitated by heavy machinery or were electrocuted.
Heat is another major concern, as Saudi Arabia ramps up construction work in preparation for hosting the 2034 tournament.
