CNN —David Beckham’s “status as a gay icon will be shredded” if the former England captain and Manchester United star continues in his role as a Qatar World Cup ambassador said British comedian Joe Lycett on Sunday. Beckham, contacted by CNN through his representatives, declined to comment on the criticism around his ambassadorship. “You’re the first Premiership footballer to do shoots with gay magazines like Attitude, to speak openly about your gay fans,” Lycett said. Alexander Tamargo/Getty ImagesHRW has also recently highlighted “arbitrary arrests and ill-treatment” of LGBTQ people in Qatar. “There are just a few days until the World Cup kickoff, but that’s plenty of time for the Qatari government to end ill-treatment of LGBT people,” HRW said in a November press release.

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