Fifa secretary-general Jerome Valcke has confirmed that the 2022 World Cup which is scheduled to take place in Qatar will not be held during the summer. Valcke said in an interview to the radio station "France Info" that
It (the World Cup) will not be in June or July .. Frankly I think it'll be played between November 15 and January 15 at the latest. If you play between November 15 and the end of the year - that's when the weather is at its most favourable.
Valcke went on to say that the weather would be;
like a warm spring in Europe ... an average temperature of 25 degrees, therefore it's perfect for football
Qatar is situated on the Qatar Peninsula, north-east of the Arabian Peninsula. Summer temperatures reach highs of 41 Celcius in June and July, meaning it'd be infeasibly warm for both players and fans. A winter World Cup is an unpopular option; with the organisers preferring a summer tournament, the African Cup of Nations scheduled for January 2023, and losing bidder Australia vowing to pursue FIFA for compensation if the tournament is held in the wintertime. With more than 8 years to go until the tournament kicks off, the Qatari World Cup is bringing huge scrutiny upon FIFA and it's internal workings, with bribery allegations, and FOX already having paid over $1 billion for rights for summer World Cups in 2018 and 2022, it's turning out to be a massive headache for world football's governing organisation, which shows no sign of abating just yet.
Diarmuid is a freelance student and studious sports journalist operating out of the wilds of Dublin, Ireland. His specialist subjects include the English Premier League, the GAA, and track and field athletics.
