Qatar World Cup

[gillie]

Will not be played in the summer months Fifa have announced.That's European football fucked for at least 2 years.

[lets all have a disco]

This wont be the end of it Clubs/Countries will be thinking of ways to keep tournaments in warmer climates for future years.
Spread he gospel they will say....increase revenue will be the reason.

[john@staustell]

Daft cunts, really annoys me.

But - problem-solving - they only need to put 2 weeks on the beginning and end of the season. Less hols for players.

[ross.mcfc]

Will not be played in the summer months Fifa have announced.That's European football fucked for at least 2 years.

No. That is European Football getting exactly what it wants.

Watch them capitalize on this.

[Wonderwall]

I fully expect the likes of San Marino to qualify for that world cup with Spain, Italy, Germany, France, England, Sweden, Belgium, Holland, etc etc having a mini tournament to forget the horrible qualifying campaign they all had!

[nottsblue]

How long before players contracts have clauses which prohibit players playing internationals in exchange for higher wages?

[sheblue]

If its a winter world cup then its in january sometime so then they have to bring forward qualifying and have a big 2-3 month domestic winter break! sure national sides will need 4-5 weeks at least to prepare for the tournament.
Massive cock up.

[Wonderwall]

If its a winter world cup then its in january sometime so then they have to bring forward qualifying and have a big 2-3 month domestic winter break! sure national sides will need 4-5 weeks at least to prepare for the tournament.
Massive cock up.

that will make the january transfer window very interesting

[Invisible Man Fan]

that will make the january transfer window very interesting

It would well and truly kill it. No business is done whilst a tournament is on

[JamieMCFC]

FIFA: No decision on World Cup 2022

FIFA insists the decision on what time of year to hold the 2022 World Cup will not be made until after this summer's tournament, after secretary general Jerome Valcke claimed the Qatar finals would not occur in June and July.

Scheduling has been debated ever since the tournament was controversially awarded to Qatar in December 2010, especially over fears that the summer heat in the Gulf state would be dangerous for players and fans alike.

Valcke reiterated his stance on Wednesday, telling Radio France: “The dates for the World Cup [in Qatar] will not be June-July. To be honest, I think it will be held between November 15 and January 15 at the latest.

“If you play between November 15 and the end of December that's the time when the weather conditions are best, when you can play in temperatures equivalent to a warm spring season in Europe, averaging 25 degrees. That would be perfect for playing football.''

FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce responded to the comments, telling Sky Sports News he was "shocked" to hear Valcke's statement as a decision has yet to be made by the Executive Committee.

And world football's governing body confirmed that Valcke was simply expressing his own opinion.

"Secretary general Jerome Valcke explained today in the Radio France interview -- as he had already mentioned previously -- that in his view the 2022 FIFA World Cup must take place in winter and the best possible time frame would be 15 November to 15 January," a statement from FIFA said.

"However, the precise event date is still subject to an ongoing consultation process which involves all main event stakeholders, including both the international football community (FIFA, confederations, member associations, leagues, clubs, players) as well as FIFA's commercial partners (commercial affiliates and media rights licensees).

"As the event will not be played until eight years' time the consultation process will not be rushed and will be given the necessary time to consider all of the elements relevant for a decision. Consequently, no decision will be taken before the upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil as agreed by the FIFA Executive Committee."

As well as controversy over the potential dates of the World Cup, Qatar has also attracted criticism for its alleged mistreatment of the migrant workers who are building the country's stadiums ahead of the World Cup.

http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/16745 ... up?cc=5901

[Hutch's Shoulder]

Can't even agree amongst themselves so no chance of a sensible outcome.

[Dameerto]

They dont need agreement, Blatter has a block vote of the smaller FAs in his back pocket, it's how they were able to stitch up the English FA when the original decision was made to give it to Qatar in the first place. When that bent bastard dies I will celebrate.

[halnone]

If they hold it in January, how can they still call it the 2022 world cup? It would be in 2023 for fuck's sake.


I don't think that FIFA will get away with this anyway. I can see several lawsuits in the future, from the Australian FA and Fox in the states, who purchased the rights to the world cup with the assumption it would be played in the summer. They would be broadcasting NFL in the winter, not the world cup, therefore the rights aren't worth to them what they paid.

[JamieMCFC]

If they hold it in January, how can they still call it the 2022 world cup? It would be in 2023 for fuck's sake.

FIFA keep throwing out different time frames. A couple of months ago it was January/February 2022 that they were talking about. But the Winter Olympics are during that time.

[Im_Spartacus]

If its a winter world cup then its in january sometime so then they have to bring forward qualifying and have a big 2-3 month domestic winter break! sure national sides will need 4-5 weeks at least to prepare for the tournament. Massive cock up.

More likely to see Western Europe move to a summer season IMHO

There has to be b agenda behind this for Uefa not to be playing holy fuck over it, they have a fucking angle on this make no mistake about it

[Blue Since 76]

More likely to see Western Europe move to a summer season IMHO

There has to be b agenda behind this for Uefa not to be playing holy fuck over it, they have a fucking angle on this make no mistake about it

Agree - if the clubs weren't in favour, they could just refuse to release the players. UEFA and FIFA would ban players and potential the clubs, at which point the top European clubs would set up a league they managed.

Europe is currently the powerhouse in football, but many of the fans don't live there. A unified 3 month winter break would allow regular tournaments in China, India or the middle east where the new markets are.

I'm also expecting them to split the halves into two on health and safety grounds, to allow players to take on water. Not sure what the TV companies would do with a three minute gap in the middle of the game though...

It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out.

[Im_Spartacus]

Agree - if the clubs weren't in favour, they could just refuse to release the players. UEFA and FIFA would ban players and potential the clubs, at which point the top European clubs would set up a league they managed. Europe is currently the powerhouse in football, but many of the fans don't live there. A unified 3 month winter break would allow regular tournaments in China, India or the middle east where the new markets are. I'm also expecting them to split the halves into two on health and safety grounds, to allow players to take on water. Not sure what the TV companies would do with a three minute gap in the middle of the game though... It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out.

One thing which seems minor to many, but is actually a real pain in the Middle East, is that gmt is +3hours, and bst is +2 - so watching in the winter is considerably more inconvenient in the middle east.

I invited a west ham fan (season ticket holder till he came out here a few months ago) over tonight firstly out of hospitality, and secondly so I was unlikely to watch the game in bed and inevitably fall asleep dying the game which I generally do. He couldn't be arsed, the 11pm kick off was too late for him to justify being fucked in the morning as we start at 730.

Many on here who make the effort at fR more unsocial hours would criticise both me and the other lad, but to be honest, we are symptomatic of the market football wants to reach out to, the media companies want us to watch to sell advertising space.

The benefits of an earlier kick off time in the major markets of the middle east and later kick off time in the US are vast from a media perspective.

If summer football was introduced, I expect an earlier kick off time would also follow, with an argument being that it's safer to drive in the daylight, meaning people have no choice but to go straight to the ground from work, buy their food in the stadium, etc etc etc

[Dameerto]

If its a winter world cup then its in january sometime so then they have to bring forward qualifying and have a big 2-3 month domestic winter break! sure national sides will need 4-5 weeks at least to prepare for the tournament. Massive cock up.

More likely to see Western Europe move to a summer season IMHO

There has to be b agenda behind this for Uefa not to be playing holy fuck over it, they have a fucking angle on this make no mistake about it

Even before the Qatar decision was announced Platini had made a statement saying they were his choice. There was a minor uproar about it when the final decision was made.