By Andrew Warshaw in Doha
November 17 – The most powerful man in Asian football insisted today that Qatar was still on track to host the World Cup despite an unfavourable assessment by FIFA but stressed the world governing body should “never again” vote on back to back tournaments at the same time.
With tensions rising and little over two weeks to go before the votes for 2018 and 2022, AFC president Mohamed Bin Hammam said the time had come to return to the status quo and thereby reduce the possibility of corruption allegations that have plunged the entire process into crisis.
“I hope it’s the last time,” Bin Hammam told the Aspire4Sport conference in Doha.
“From the beginning the Asian members, including me, were not convinced that deciding two World Cups at the same time was a good idea.
“I raised my voice and said the decision for 2022 should perhaps have been in 2016, or maybe 2014, and that it was not appropriate for people sitting in the FIFA ExCo today to make that decision.
“We raised so many objections but the vote was taken and we outvoted. I hope people have realised that it was wrong.”
With FIFA’s Ethics Committee about to rule on Qatar’s alleged collusion with Spain, along with whether to extend the suspensions of two FIFA Executive Committee members over claims of corruption, Bin Hammam, one of FIFA’s most prominent voting members, said there was only one decision to make.
“I trust the Committee and I’m sure they will come to the right decision to protect the integrity of the game,” he said.
Insisting that merely talking to others involved in the bid process could not by any stretch of the imagination constitute collusion, bin Hammam added: “From where I am sitting, I would like someone to tell me what the collusion is.
“It may be nice to say something is happening between Qatar and another bidder but please tell me exactly what it is?”
He repeated that eliminating joint ballots would reduce any possible misinterpretation of approach.
“Once this is in place, two people will no longer be able to talk about supporting each other.
“A lack of specific criteria needs to be addressed.”
Qatar’s searing summer heat was one of the factors highlighted by Fifa’s evaluation report published today as a potential health risk but Bin Hammam said thousands of visitors came to the Gulf state in mid-summer without feeling any after-effects.
“In the Gulf region maybe July and August are very humid but our hotels never complain about lack of visitors in those months,” he said.
“In fact we are used to receiving more people at that time than any other.”
Pointing out Qatar’s planned revotutionary cooling techniques, Bin Hammam added: “The temperature inside the stadiums in July and August will be 25-26 degrees which is actually a perfect climate to play football.
“In some other countries people complain about the cold.
“In South Africa we had one of the best World Cups but the temperature was zero which was not ideal.”
Citing another criticism of Qatar’s bid, its size, Bin Hammam added: “It is a World Cup beyond the game itself.
“We have a very noble vision and deserve to be hosts.”
Bin Hammam said it was no hindrance that four Asian nations are bidding against the United States for 2022 and refused to be drawn on China’s stated interest in staging the World Cup in 2026, viewed in some quarters as being counter-productive to Asian hopes this time round.
No continent can stage the tournament twice in a row and bin Hammam said: “China deserves its chance to host the World Cup, if not in 2026, then some time afterwards. The world will not end in 2022 or beyond.
“I’m sure it will happen at some point but I believe competition for 2022 is healthy.”
He declined to comment over whether the spate of corruption allegations emanating from the British media will ultimately work against the English bid for 2018 but believes there is a fine line between cutting edge and irresponsibility.
“I respect the English media but sometimes they go over the top,” he said.
“If there are conditions put in place for voting for someone, that is wrong and people should not deserve to be where they are.
“But that didn’t happen.”
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