- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
FIFA hopes to finalise in March the dates for the 2022 Qatar World Cup, ending a debate over the Gulf state’s searing summer heat which has dogged the tournament as much as allegations of corruption.
The game’s world governing body will first hear the results on February 23 of a report by a working group set up to examine when to hold the four-week showpiece.
A decision should then be made in March at FIFA’s next executive committee meeting.
Both FIFA president Sepp Blatter and his UEFA counterpart Michel Platini are in favour of a winter World Cup in Qatar to avoid the blistering summer heat where temperatures rocket into the high 40-degree territory.
However, there have been fears of a clash with the 2022 Winter Olympics, while European football leagues have expressed reservations over a tournament being held in the middle of the domestic club season.
Last Tuesday, the Association of European Clubs and European Professional Football Leagues suggested the World Cup be played from May 4-June 5 in 2022.
Two other options being examined are January-February or November-December that year.
Meanwhile, FIFA decided on Friday the opening match of the 2018 World Cup in Russia will take place on June 18 with the final scheduled for Sunday, July 15.
Are you the ultimate team manager? Pick your own superstar team and go head to head with other football fans for glory and cash prizes on Draftstars. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.