From human rights protests to allegations of corruption, the 2022 World Cup has proved the most controversial by far.
Now, it seems, there is another issue troubling officials at the tournament: the town of Dereham.
Three Lions fan Ian Odgers, who is in Qatar following the team's progress, has spoken of his difficulty in getting his England flag - emblazoned with the name of his home town - into stadiums.
At every ground he has been to - and he has also attended several games not involving England - cagey security officials have insisted on carefully inspecting the flag, which says "Mr O on tour, England till I die, Dereham Town".
In particular, they are concerned about the word 'Dereham', suspecting it might contain a political message and be waved as part of a protest inside the stadiums.
In order to be allowed to take the flag inside, he has had to repeatedly have it checked by stewards who use a specialist translation camera in order to check the town's name is not a slogan.
"When it first happened, I thought, 'this is nuts', that they thought Dereham was this political message I was trying to get in," Mr Odgers said.
“The stewards are almost robotic, they have their rules and stick to them.
“I like to get my flag out and every time I go into the stadium they have to take a photo of it and get it approved."
The hosts and organisers FIFA are sensitive about players and fans staging protests during the tournament.
England and other countries were forced to back down on plans to wear 'OneLove' armbands, intended as a protest against all forms of discrimination, and there have been reports of rainbow hats - worn in support of LGBT rights - being confiscated from fans.
But Mr Odgers, who works at Peerless Plastics and Coatings in Thetford, had some sympathy for the officials concerned by "Dereham".
"I cannot read Arabic, so it makes sense for them to check it, as how would they know of a small town in Norfolk?"
It is not only officials who seem alarmed by the Breckland town.
Mr Odgers watched the game between Qatar and Senegal at the Al Thumama Stadium.
“A Senegalese fan, who was sitting near me in the stands, got irate with me, asking if Dereham was political. I said, ‘no, it's just the town I live in.’
“Afterward he said, ‘ok ok'. And he was eventually all smiles.”
Despite the difficulties, the Dereham flag has already been flown in all eight World Cup stadiums in Qatar.
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