No public World Cup viewing, says Barcelona in Qatar protest

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona won’t offer public viewing venues to follow Spain’s team during next month’s World Cup in Qatar because its mayor says her city doesn’t support holding the soccer tournament in a “dictatorship.” Spanish news agency EFE reports that Barcelona mayor Ada Colau rejected a request to open a public venue for citizens to gather and watch Spain. The request came from an opposition party during a city hall council session. Colau says her city government would not “dedicate public resources nor public spaces for the viewing of a World Cup that is being held in a dictatorship.”