By RYAN TOLMICH
The prospect of a winter World Cup is appearing more and more likely.
In a meeting Tuesday, a FIFA task force assessed the possibility of holding the 2022 World Cup in the winter months. The group discussed both January-February 2022, which would conflict with the Winter Olympics, or November-December 2022 as potential dates. In addition, FIFA is looking into the possibility of holding the tournament in April-May, although those dates would conflict with the month-long period of Ramadan.
The committee also discussed a report on potential health hazards that could result from holding a summer World Cup in Qatar.
“The objective of today’s meeting was to receive feedback from all parties and to work on narrowing the options,” said Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, president of the Asian Football Confederation.“We are pleased with the level of detail provided by the participants and with the productive discussions that took place today.
“We now have a greater understanding of where each of the stakeholders is coming from and we will carefully consider these opinions as we move forward towards defining the international match calendar.”
The panel will now review the potential proposals ahead of the task force’s next meeting in early 2015.
“We are getting closer to narrowing the dates for the FIFA World Cup to two options – January/February 2022 or November/December 2022 – but FIFA has also been asked to consider May 2022,” said FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke. “We will summarize what we’ve heard today and provide feedback to all parties in order for them to prepare for the next meeting as we progress towards a final decision.”
What do you think of the recent meetings? Which dates would you prefer for the 2022 World Cup?
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