Own goal: Jumbo pulls World Cup ad featuring dancing builders

The Jumbo supermarket group has pulled a new advert promoting its World Cup giveaway because it includes footage of dancing construction workers on a building site.

An estimated 6,500 workers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have died in Qatar since it won the right to host the World Cup 10 years ago, although the true death toll may be even higher.

‘It is a scandalous and insulting advert,’ said Jan Kooy from Human Rights Watch on Twitter. His organisation is one of several which have reported on human rights abuses in the Gulf state. Amnesty International also described the Jumbo advert as ‘extremely insensitive’.

Jumbo said in a statement that it realised there is a link to be made in the advert between the ‘pitiful working conditions’ in Qatar but that this was ‘never our intention’.

‘We really regret this and offer our sincere apologies,’ the Netherlands second biggest food retail group said.

Advertising agency Alfred told trade news website Adformatie that it could not make any comment about the campaign. It has also removed a post about the advert from its Instagram page.