‘It’s horrible’ – Gareth Southgate worried about rights for women and gay England fans at Qatar World Cup

GARETH SOUTHGATE says it’s “horrible” that female and gay England fans fear travelling to the Qatar World Cup.

The Three Lions boss said he and his team will try to put pressure on the Qatari authorities to make their country more welcoming.

They will also address concerns about workers’ rights and human rights.

Southgate said: “There are issues that potentially threaten our fans when they travel: The rights of women and the rights of the LGBTQ+ community in particular.

“Sadly, through discussions that I’ve had, I don’t think some of those communities are going to go and that’s a great shame.

“And it would be horrible to think some of our fans can’t go because they feel threatened or they’re worried about their safety.

“There needs to be some clarity and some better communication that they are going to be safe, because they’re not feeling that.

“We have a group of players who recognise the platform they have and want to make a difference where they can.

“That’s obviously different in another country but we’ll do what we can when we think it’s appropriate and to the best of our capability.”

Football Association chief executive Mark Bullingham was criticised last week for claiming that migrant workers supported the World Cup – despite reports of up to 6,500 deaths as well as poor living and working conditions.

But Southgate rejected accusations from Amnesty International that the England set-up is “complacent” about the issues.

He said: “I am aware of those issues regarding compensation for the families of workers who died.

“I’m not sure that just wearing a T-shirt makes a difference. I don’t totally know what we can do.”

The tournament kicks off in November.