A lot of people are still stunned at the fact that Qatar was given the rights to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup and the big follow-up discussion is revolving around the summer heat in June/July in the Middle East. Now German football legend Franz Beckenbauer has come out saying why not hold the tournament in January?
Beckenbauer speaking to German tabloid Bild said, "We need to consider this solution of January and February when in Qatar the temperatures are around a pleasant 25 degrees. Why would that not be acceptable? The schedules for the big European leagues are due to be changed in 2012 and that would mean the impact would be less."
"Also it would be a viable alternative to the huge expenses involved in setting up air-conditioning for the stadiums and the fan zones," Beckenbauer added.
The Kaiser has a very valid point there and the Asian Football Confederation could be role model for FIFA in this idea. Qatar will be hosting the 2011 AFC Asian Cup and due to the weather it has been shifted from August to January due to the hot weather conditions which are prevailent in August.
But if FIFA seriously consider such a switch in interest of players, match officials and the fans then they could face tough opposition from the top European leagues. Only the German Bundesliga have a three to four week winter break, while other leagues have shorter breaks and the English Premier League have none at all. And a winter World Cup would mean a minimum break of at least six weeks, ideally eight/nine weeks to accommodate pre-tournament training camps and allow players to rejoin their clubs.
We can look ahead to some interesting discussions over the coming month's and years...
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