Jamie Carragher has accused World Cup organisers of making a "politically cynical" move with their appointment of ambassadors around the tournament.
A number of former stars have taken ambassadorial roles, including Carragher's ex- England team-mate David Beckham. Inter Miami co-owner Beckham, who ended his playing career with Paris Saint-Germain in 2013, reportedly signed an ambassadorial deal with Qatar worth £15million a year and has been promoting the upcoming competition.
Beckham has come in for criticism, with Eric Cantona among those to question his former Manchester United colleague. Now Carragher, while not calling out players by name, has taken aim at FIFA's record with ambassadorial appointments.
"It is more the duty of ex-players to speak out, and many have," Carragher wrote in the Daily Telegraph. "FIFA loves to surround itself with the legends of the game, appointing them as ambassadors.
"It is a politically cynical move, knowing that the more big names they have under their banner, the greater the likelihood they will be silent on major issues.
"The current and next generation of footballers would be better served if all of us who were internationals when Qatar was awarded the World Cup in 2010 used our platforms to speak out, and not just accept the FIFA or indeed UEFA cash (given they are just as responsible for the ridiculous schedule) to say how wonderful everything is when players are being burnt out."
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The World Cup is being played away from its usual summer slot, forcing a break in the domestic season in most European leagues, and Carragher has also made reference to this disruption. "The World Cup is upon us without the usual build-up, making it hard to get as excited as usual," he added.
"I will watch every game and – in my professional capacity – offer my analysis of the tournament. But do not tell me it is good for the integrity of our domestic and European competitions, good for the players, good for the fans, or good for football that is only three weeks away. It is mostly good for the bank balance of those who forced it upon us."
The ex-defender's comments come just days after he hit out at the tournament while on punditry duty with CBS Sports. Carragher described the situation facing the upcoming tournament as an "absolute disgrace" and made reference to the mid-season injuries keeping a number of players out of the tournament.
"I think that it was corrupt that Qatar were given the World Cup, and we knew at the time when they campaigned on having it in the summer, it was impossible to have a World Cup in the summer due to the temperature," he said. "It gets moved to the situation where it is now in the middle of the season, and players who spend their whole lives dreaming of playing in the World Cup as we see with Son [Heung-min].
"Thierry [Henry] just mentioned Gavi, players all around Europe and the world could get injured... a ten day injury is going to keep players out of the World Cup, which should not be happening, and it all started with FIFA giving them the World Cup in the first place."
