Qatar World Cup 2022 Bid With the 2010 FIFA World Cup in our rear view mirror, soccer fans are still singing the catchy theme song “It’s time for Africa” by Shakira, but who will it be time for in 2022? According to FIFA rotation, since Brazil is hosting in 2014 and Europe in 2018, either Asia or North America will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The U.S., bidding on behalf of North America has already had the opportunity to host the 1994 World Cup, unlike Qatar bidding on behalf of Asia and the Middle East, but is Qatar capable of hosting this magnitude of an event? The answer is yes! Qatar has experience in hosting large sporting events, has the financial assets to make them possible, developed cooling technology to reduce temperatures in stadiums, will have improved infrastructure and more than adequate housing for teams and visitors alike. All of these factors are elements that FIFA looks at when choosing host countries for World Cups. The first factor FIFA considers when choosing a host country is whether or not it has the ability to organize and put on an event like a World Cup. Qatar impressed many with how it was able to organize and accommodate the 2006 Asian Games which included more than thirty events for men and women. The way in which thousands of volunteers were directed and utilized for this event is still unrivaled in the Middle East. Sepp Blatter, president of FIFA, endorsed the idea of Qatar being the host of the 2022 FIFA World Cup based on the country’s infrastructure and capability to orchestrate the 2006 Asian Games (Rhys, 2010). When it comes to soccer, Qatar hosted the 1988 AFC Asian Cup, the 1995 FIFA U-20 world cup, and is due to host the 2011 AFC Asian Cup affirming Qatar’s love of soccer and capability of hosting soccer events. Qatar placed a bid to host the 2018 World Cup, but was rejected because of the extremely high temperatures players would have to endure during the months of June and July reaching highs of 113 degrees Fahrenheit making it the first country to be rejected based on climate issues (Vesty, 2009). Instead of accepting rejection, the bid committee was determined to find a solution to this issue and bid again to host the 2022 World Cup. Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, the 2022 Qatar bid chairman, is working with several engineers to develop technology that will counter the affects of the harsh summer heat by 68 degrees Fahrenheit making climate no longer a concern for players (Bisson, 2010). Qatar also plans to spend $42.9 billion on building new roads and upgrading the existing road network since the current system could not handle the major influx in traffic caused by fans and players alike traveling to and from matches (Roscoe, 2010). Three billion dollars has also been initially invested in the Qatar Rail network that will cover 211 miles, with four major lines, and each train to have an expected capacity of 400 to 800 passengers which should alleviate traffic from the roads (Roscoe, 2010). The Qatar Rail network is also expected to be linked to the proposed GCC train network which will allow easy travel among the six gulf countries of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates allowing fans from the region easy access to Qatar (Roscoe, 2010). Doha International Airport is also undergoing an expansion that will increase its capacity to 50 million people per day to be completed by 2012 which will allow fans and players from foreign countries to get to and from Qatar easily (Roscoe, 2010) . Construction on the Qatar-Bahrain causeway, a 28 mile bridge connecting Qatar to Bahrain, is scheduled to begin in July of this year and be completed by 2015 which will allow Bahraini fans to drive to Qatar alleviating traffic from Doha International Airport (Roscoe, 2010). All of these improvements to the infrastructure are meant to allow FIFA World Cup fans and participants easier access to the country and ease of travel within Qatar. FIFA requires host countries to provide 60,000 hotel rooms to house everyone involved with the event, but according to Hassan Abdulla al Thawadi, chief executive of the Qatar 2022 World Cup bid, 80,000 to 90,000 rooms have been offered to FIFA by the Qatar 2022 World Cup bid (Roscoe, 2010). This may seem like a lofty goal, but in preparing for the Asian Games, 30,000 rooms were provided for participants and they were erected in the span of two years proving that housing issues will not be a disqualifying factor in Qatar’s bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The last factor that FIFA considers when choosing a host country for a World Cup is whether or not that country has enough disposable income to implement the previously mentioned requirements. Qatar, being one of the wealthiest countries in the Middle East due to the rising oil prices and natural gas sales, has more disposable income than would ever be spent on the improvements made to its infrastructure, expansion in its lodging capacity and development of stadiums causing Qatar to have nothing to lose and everything to gain from hosting a World Cup. The potential tourism this event will create will put Qatar on the map economically as being a favored tourist site in the region. The Middle East hasn’t had the opportunity to host a FIFA World Cup even though there are millions of football fans in the region who are waiting to be able to attend a live match and willing to pay extensive amounts of money to do so. Qatar is the best hosting candidate for the region because of its proposed infrastructure improvements, its large amount of disposable income, the experience the country has in hosting other large sporting events, the housing it plans to provide, and the climate control to be installed in the proposed stadiums. Qatar is also centrally located, easily accessible from the Arabian Gulf and the rest of the world, and can boast uncompromising safety and security to all. Works Cited
Bisson, Mark. “Qatar 2022 World Cup Bid Reveals New Stadium Plans and Cooling Technologies.” World Football Insider 28 Apr. 2010.
Rhys, Paul. “ Blatter reaches out to Arabia.” Aljazeera 24 Apr. 2010: 19:09.
Roscoe, Andrew. “Qatar Unveils World Cup Building Plans.” MEED 19 (7-13 May, 2010).
Vesty, Marc. “The race to host World Cup 2018 and 2022.” BBC Sport 17 Mar. 2009.