| كأس العالم 2022 Qatar 2022 |
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Bid logo |
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| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Qatar |
| Teams | 32 (from 6 confederations) |
| Venue(s) | 12 (in 7 host cities) |
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← 2018
2026 →
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The 2022 FIFA World Cup will be the 22nd FIFA World Cup, an international association football tournament that is scheduled to take place in 2022 in Qatar. The competition is scheduled to take place in June and July, although proposals have been made for a winter season. The tournament will involve 32 national teams, including that of the host nation. This is the first time a country in the Middle East will host the World Cup.
In May 2011, allegations of corruption within the FIFA senior officials raised questions over the legitimacy of the World Cup 2022 being held in Qatar. According to the Vice-President Jack Warner, an email has been publicised about the possibility that Qatar 'bought' the 2022 world cup through bribery via Mohamed Bin Hammam who was president of the Asian Football Confederation at the time. Qatar's officials in the bid team for 2022 have denied any wrongdoing.[1]
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The bidding procedure to host the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups began in January 2009, and national associations had until 2 February 2009 to register their interest.[2] Initially, eleven bids were made for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, but Mexico later withdrew from proceedings,[3] and Indonesia's bid was rejected by FIFA in February 2010 after the Indonesian government failed to submit a letter to support the bid.[4] During the bidding process, all non-UEFA nations gradually withdrew from the 2018 bids, thus making the UEFA nations ineligible for the 2022 bid.
There were eventually five bids for the 2022 FIFA World Cup: Australia, Japan, Qatar, South Korea and the United States. The twenty-two member FIFA Executive Committee convened in Zürich on 2 December 2010 to vote to select the hosts of both tournaments.[5] The decision to host the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, which was graded as having "high operational risk",[6] generated criticism from media commentators, gay rights groups and American, Australian and English officials.[7] There have been allegations of bribery or corruption in the selection process involving four members of FIFA's executive committee, which FIFA is investigating.[8]
Qatar is the smallest nation, both by relative population and by area, ever to have been awarded a FIFA World Cup. (The next smallest by population is Uruguay, host of the 1930 World Cup, whose 2009 population is more than twice that of Qatar: the next smallest by area is Switzerland, host of the 1954 FIFA World Cup, which is more than three times as large as Qatar).
The voting patterns were as follows:[9]
| Bidders | Votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | |
| Qatar | 11 | 10 | 11 | 14 |
| United States | 3 | 5 | 6 | 8 |
| South Korea | 4 | 5 | 5 | — |
| Japan | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| Australia | 1 | — | — | — |
The qualification process for the 2022 World Cup has not yet been announced. All FIFA member associations, of which there are currently 208,[10] are eligible to enter qualification. Qatar, as hosts, qualified automatically for the tournament.
| Team | Method of qualification |
Date of qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Qatar | Host | 2 December 2010 |
The first five proposed stadiums for the World Cup were unveiled at the beginning of March 2010. The stadia will employ cooling technology capable of reducing temperatures within the stadium by up to 20 degrees Celsius, and the upper tiers of the stadia will be disassembled after the World Cup and donated to countries with less developed sports infrastructure.[11] All of the five stadium projects launched have been designed by German architect Albert Speer & Partners.[12]
The Al-Khor Stadium is planned for Al-Khor, located 50 kilometres north of Doha. The stadium will have a total capacity of 45,330, with 19,830 of the seats forming part of a temporary modular upper tier. The Al-Wakrah stadium, to be located in Al-Wakrah in southern Qatar, will have a total capacity of 45,120 seats. The stadium will also contain a temporary upper tier of 25,500 seats. The stadium will be surrounded by large solar panels and will be decorated with Islamic art. The Al-Wakrah and Al-Khor stadiums would have been built regardless of whether Qatar was awarded the World Cup, according to the bid committee. However, the temporary upper-tier sections will now also be added as Qatar has won the right to host the tournament.[12]
A report released on 9 December 2010 quoted FIFA President Sepp Blatter as stating that Qatar's neighbours could host some matches during the World Cup. However, no specific countries were named in the report.[13] Blatter added that any such decision must be taken by Qatar first and then endorsed by FIFA's executive committee.[14] Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan told the Australian Associated Press that holding games in Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, and possibly Saudi Arabia would help to incorporate the people of the region during the tournament.[15]
| Lusail | Doha | Doha | Doha |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lusail Iconic Stadium | Khalifa International Stadium | Sports City Stadium | Education City Stadium |
| Capacity: 86,250 (planned) |
Capacity: 50,000 (plans to expand to 68,030) |
Capacity: 47,560 (planned) |
Capacity: 45,350 (planned) |
| Al Khor | Ash-Shamal | ||
| Al-Khor Stadium | Al-Shamal Stadium | ||
| Capacity: 45,330 (planned) |
Capacity: 45,120 (planned) |
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| Al Wakrah | Umm Salal | ||
| Al-Wakrah Stadium | Umm Salal Stadium | ||
| Capacity: 45,120 (planned) |
Capacity: 45,120 (planned) |
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| Doha | Doha | Al Rayyan | Doha |
| Doha Port Stadium | Al-Gharafa Stadium | Ahmed bin Ali Stadium | Qatar University Stadium |
| Capacity: 44,950 (planned) |
Capacity: 21,282 (plans to expand to 44,740) |
Capacity: 21,282 (plans to expand to 44,740) |
Capacity: 43,520 (planned) |
A number of Western groups and media outlets have expressed concern over the suitability of Qatar to host the event,[16][17] with regard to interpretations of human rights,[17][18][19] press freedom,[20] and climatic conditions.
At the final game between Australia and Japan of the 2011 Asian Cup at Khalifa Stadium, riot police locked the gates prohibiting up to 5000 ticket holders from entering the ground, other fans said their tickets were not properly checked, and the crowd were not allowed to leave the stadium promptly after the match. [21]
Hassan Abdulla al Thawadi, chief executive of the Qatar 2022 World Cup bid, said the Muslim state would also permit alcohol consumption during the event.[22] Specific fan-zones will be established where alcohol can be bought.[23][24][25] Though legal with a permit, drinking in public is not permitted as Qatar's legal system is based on Sharia law.[26]
The head of the Qatar bid delegation has stated that should Israel qualify, they will be able to compete in the World Cup despite the country not recognising Israel.[22][24][27]
Following the announcement Qatar would host the World Cup, the Qatar stock exchange index climbed on speculation that infrastructure preparations for the event would boost the economy. Qatar pledged investments of up to $75 billion for infrastructure, public facilities, sports facilities, tourism, communications and transportation to cope with the event.
Events such as the 2022 FIFA World Cup have suggested Qatar could be a possible alternative to Dubai as a regional hub for business and foreign investment.[28]
Merrill Lynch also estimated that preparation for the game could cost up to US$65 billion, or $41,000 per person in Qatar (including the population but limited to citizens). It also sought to become a global hub along the lines of Dubai. The build up to the World Cup was expected to see growth rates at above 10 percent, though it was questioned if the World Cup infrastructure could be usable after 2022 or would be white elephants.[29] There were also questions asked about Qatar's capacity to host visiting fans. The wife of the Emir, Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned, also said that: "This is not just for Qatar, but for the whole region. This is an opportunity to eradicate misconceptions, not just about Qatar, but about the wider Islamic and Arab world. We are a very welcoming country, a young nation. And we are not just dreamers, we are achievers."[30]
As the World Cup usually occurs during the northern hemisphere's summer, the weather in Qatar was a concern with temperature reaching as high as 50 degrees Celsius (122 °F). However, the Qatar bid's chief executive, Hassan al-Thawadi said "Heat is not and will not be an issue."[31] The Qatar 2022 Bid's official site also explains:
"Each of the five stadiums will harness the power of the suns rays to provide a cool environment for players and fans by converting solar energy into electricity that will then be used to cool both fans and players at the stadiums. When games are not taking place, the solar installations at the stadia will export energy onto the power grid. During matches, the stadia will draw energy from the grid. This is the basis for the stadiums’ carbon-neutrality. Along with the stadiums, we plan to make the cooling technologies we’ve developed available to other countries in hot climates, so that they too can host major sporting events."
This method of cooling techniques is theoretically able to reduce temperatures from 50 to 27 degrees Celsius. The bidding committee also proposes to use such cooling technologies in fan-zones, training pitches and walkways between metro stations and stadiums.[32]
Two doctors from Qatar's Aspetar sports hospital in Doha who gave an interview in November 2010 to Qatar Today magazine said the climate would be an issue in saying that the region's climate would "affect performance levels from a health point of view" of professional athletes, specifically footballers, that "recovery times between games would be longer" than in a temperate climate and that, on the field of play, "more mistakes would be made". Additionally, one of the doctors said that "total acclimation [to the Qatari climate] is impossible."[33]
Franz Beckenbauer, a member of FIFA's executive committee, said Qatar could be allowed to host 2022 World Cup in winter. He justified his proposal on grounds that Qatar will be saving money, which otherwise they would have spent in cooling the stadiums. Beckenbauer said "One should think about another solution. In January and February you have comfortable 25 degrees there," he said. "Qatar won the vote and deserves a fair chance as the first host from the Middle East."[34] At a ceremony in Qatar marking the occasion of having been awarded the World Cup, FIFA President Sepp Blatter later agreed that this suggestion was plausible,[14] but FIFA later clarified that any change from the bid position of a June/July games would be for the host association to propose.[35]
The notion of holding the Cup during Europe's winter was further boosted by the UEFA President Michel Platini indicating that he was ready to rearrange the European club competitions accordingly.[36]
The selection of Qatar as hosts attracted controversy, as homosexuality is illegal in Qatar. FIFA President Sepp Blatter initially joked "I would say they should refrain from any sexual activities.", he later stated that "we (FIFA) don't want any discrimination. What we want to do is open this game to everybody, and to open it to all cultures, and this is what we are doing in 2022.".[37][38][39][40][41][42][43]
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