Call on FIFA to Demand an End to Dog Slaughter in Morocco

UPDATE (12/11/24): Morocco has officially been confirmed as a co-host of the 2030 FIFA World Cup. However, FIFA still has the power to hold Morocco accountable for the ongoing dog slaughter in the country. FIFA can sanction host nations that violate ethical principles with penalties ranging from fines to stripping a country of its hosting rights. We must continue to put pressure on FIFA to stop these mass killings. Their silence makes them complicit in this unthinkable violence.

Right now, thousands of dogs are being slaughtered throughout Morocco in a cruel “clean-up” effort designed to prepare the nation to host the FIFA 2030 World Cup.

Morocco, Spain, and Portugal have joined together and have been chosen to co-host the 2030 World Cup, a decision that was confirmed after a final FIFA vote on December 11th, 2024.

If FIFA fails to hold Morocco accountable and continues to allow them to host the World Cup, campaigners estimate that up to three million dogs could be killed in the lead-up to the tournament.

The International Animal Coalition has spoken out against the killings, sharing harrowing details of dogs being poisoned with strychnine, administered through bait or injections.

The group also released footage showing dogs being hunted down, violently seized with metal clamps, and thrown onto trucks on top of other animals. They are then transported to facilities where they are killed using inhumane methods, including beatings.

Gunmen also reportedly roam the streets with rifles and pistols to shoot the animals, leaving those who do not die immediately to bleed out. The dogs all end up in mass graves, many while still conscious.

This extreme violence reportedly takes place in public, where it can be witnessed by children, citizens, and tourists alike.

This is unacceptable!

Dogs should never be massacred for any reason, but to do so in the name of hosting a sporting event is grotesque and beyond shocking.

FIFA has a duty to intercede when this type of harm is being committed in their name. There is still time for FIFA to sanction Morocco or remove them as a co-host of the World Cup if the inhumane methods currently being used to kill stray dogs continue.

Please join us in calling on FIFA to do the right thing and hold Morocco accountable for this unthinkable animal cruelty.

Morocco must not be allowed to host the world's premier international soccer tournament, an event that should inspire joy and unify nations in a celebration of this beloved sport, while committing such atrocities against helpless, innocent dogs.