A round-up of the reaction to FIFA’s recommendation on Tuesday to stage the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in November and December, including strong words from the Premier League – and a healthy dose of common sense from Gary Neville.
English Premier League:
“The 2022 World Cup was bid for and awarded to Qatar as a summer tournament,” a spokesman said.
“The prospect of a winter World Cup is neither workable or desirable for European domestic football.”
European Clubs’ Association (ECA):
“For the football family, the rescheduling of the FIFA World Cup 2022 presents a difficult and challenging task,” chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said in a statement.
“All match calendars across the world will have to accommodate such a tournament in 2022/23, which requires everyone’s willingness to compromise.
“European clubs and leagues cannot be expected to bear the costs for such rescheduling. We expect the clubs to be compensated for the damage that a final decision would cause.”
The German Football League (DLF):
“Staging the World Cup in November/December is an organisational as well as a financial burden for European leagues,” DLF managing director Andreas Rettig said.
“One also has to take into account the strain on top players. A shortened match plan cannot mean that there will be the same number of games to be played in a shorter period of time.”
World players’ union FIFPro:
“Changes to the match schedule that could potentially place extra strain on the workload of the players is for FIFPro to analyse together with all stakeholders in due course,” the organisation said in a statement.
German Football Association (DFB):
“It is hard to get used to the idea that a World Cup final is to be held shortly before Christmas,” said President Wolfgang Niersbach, who leads the world’s largest single sports federation.
“But what is certain is that because of the enormous heat in the summer there can be no play and so there is no other alternative than to stage it in the winter. Now it is up to those planning the dates to find the best possible solutions which no doubt is not easy but is also not impossible.”