MOSCOW, September 22 (RIA Novosti) – Qatar will not be hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup due to extremely high temperatures, Theo Zwanziger, the FIFA Executive Committee member, said on Monday, the Guardian reports.
“I personally think that in the end of the 2022 World Cup will not take place in Qatar”, Zwanziger said. “Medics say that they cannot accept responsibility with a World Cup taking place under these conditions”, he further added, as quoted by Reuters.
In the past, officials from Qatar said that it was feasible to hold a World Cup in their country due to new cooling technologies in stadiums and training areas that the country was developing. Yet, there are still many concerns over the health of the athletes and visiting fans.
“The may be able to cool the stadiums but a World Cup does not take place only there”, Zwanziger said. “Fans from around the world will be coming and travelling in this heat and the first life-threatening case will trigger an investigation by a state prosecutor. That is not something that FIFA Exco members want to answer for”, he further concluded, as quoted by the Guardian.
FIFA has expressed an idea of potentially changing the usual dates of World Cups from June-July to winter dates to avoid the scorching summer temperatures. However, this would result in the schedule disruption of many domestic leagues, the Independent said.
The last FIFA World Cup was held Brazil, where concerns about the heat arose during the event. There, official water breaks were introduced to allow the athletes to dehydrate, reports the Los Angeles Times.
