Zinedine Zidane statue that sparked backlash in Qatar to be re-installed

The five-metre bronze work was removed days after its unveiling in 2013 following heavy criticism

The statue was removed in 2013 but is set to be re-installed (AL-WATAN DOHA/AFP via Getty Images)

Qatar plans to re-install a sculpture immortalising Zinedine Zidane’s headbutt during the 2006 World Cup final, which had been removed in 2013 after a domestic backlash.

The five-metre bronze work was removed days after its unveiling after people in the conservative Muslim country criticised it for promoting idolatry and others said it encouraged violence.

“Evolution happens in societies. It takes time and people may criticize something to begin with, but then understand it and get used to it,” Qatar Museums chairperson Sheikha al-Mayassa al-Thani said on Monday.

She said the original site on the capital’s seafront corniche was “not right” and that the sculpture would be remounted at a new sports museum in Doha, which is hosting football’s World Cup later this year.

Some conservative Muslims believe artistic depictions of human forms should be forbidden to avoid idolatry. Although statues are on public display in many Muslim countries, they are less common in the Arab Gulf.

The sculpture by Algerian-born French artist Adel Abdessemed depicts the moment during extra time in the 2006 World Cup final when Zidane headbutted Italy’s Marco Materazzi. Zidane was sent off and Italy went on to beat France on penalties.

Al-Mayassa told reporters the aim of displaying the work was to promote conversations about “stress on athletes...and the importance of dealing with issues of mental health”.

The statue was removed in 2013 (AFP via Getty Images)

“Zidane is a great friend of Qatar. And he’s a great role model for the Arab world,” she said. “Art, like anything else, is a matter of taste. Our goal is to empower people.”

The sculpture was not the only one to stir controversy in Doha. A series of 14 giant bronze ones depicting the gestation of a fetus, unveiled on the grounds of a maternity hospital in 2013, was concealed behind giant wooden hoardings before they were removed in 2018.