By Andrew Warshaw
January 2 – UEFA president Michel Platini has re-iterated his call for the 2022 Qatar World Cup to be played in winter –making his latest stance at a sports conference in nearby Dubai.
Platini has long defined winter as meaning November and December as distinct from December and January when many European leagues are enjoying a winter break.
Any decision on switching the tournament would likely have to be made within the next two years for logistical reasons but Platini’s views put him on a collision course with the major leagues within his own confederation who are not keen to re-arrange their schedules.
Platini voted for Qatar when the ballot was held in Dec 2010 but made no mention at the time of his preference for a winter tournament. The Qatar organisers say their revolutionary cooling plans will calm fears over the fierce summer heat but
Platini isn’t convinced.
“If you go to Qatar in June/July then my message to you is ‘good luck’ because it will be 55 degrees,” he told the Dubai
International Sports Conference.
“It’s good that the stadia can be air-cooled but I think that the most important sports events in the world should be played in the most appropriate conditions for the sport – and the best time would be to play in the winter.
“That would mean November/December 2022 so as not to clash with the Winter Olympic Games which are scheduled for January 2022.”
Although Qatar has categorically ruled out sharing the World Cup with neighbouring Gulf states, Platini thinks it would be a good idea – just like his revolutionary pan-Continental plan for the Euro 2020 finals.
He said as much last summer and repeated it again in Dubai.
“I don’t want to get mixed up in Gulf matters but if Qatar want to extend the World Cup to other regions of the Gulf then this might be a good idea,” he said.
Platini added that more needed to be done to educate young footballers in Asia – and that only improved competition in the Gulf could help produce world-class players.
“I believe you need to have more competitions in Asia. You play once, you lose and they throw you out, that’s what I’ve heard from clubs. It’s about raising the interest of people. It’s also important to raise the education of young players.
“There are never going to be good players from Dubai or Abu Dhabi or other Emirates unless they have a good football education.”
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