Platini outlines plans to ensure a winter World Cup in qatar

[KC McElroy]

It's good qatar is looking to stage a winter tournament for countries willing to take part in exchange for the loss of the 2022 summer World Cup which will be hosted elsewhere. At least this way foreign players wearing qatari shirts will get a chance to play against some average national teams in the world.

http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/world...ter-world-cup/

UEFA president Michel Platini is determined to stage the World Cup during the European winter for the first time at the 2022 tournament in Qatar, the Frenchman revealed to the London Evening Standard

The move would require all major European Leagues to take a month-long winter break, including the Barclays Premier League which has no mid-season break at all.

"I hope it will be held in winter," he said. "We have to go to Qatar when it is good for everybody to participate. What is better for the fans?"

Platini believes there is enough time to work out how to organise the domestic leagues around a winter World Cup.

"In 10 years we can manage to decide how we can postpone the season for one month," he said.

"January is difficult for the World Cup because you have the Winter Olympic Games. If we stop from 2 November to 20 December, it means, instead of finishing in May, we stop in June.

"It is not a big problem. It is for the good of the World Cup, the most important competition in the world."

Platini voted for Qatar to get the 2022 World Cup in preference to England and was also in favour of Russia being awarded the 2018 tournament.

"I voted for Qatar because it was time to go to a country in that part of the world," he said. "They bid five times."

He also denied voting for Qatar after being told to do so by former France president Nicolas Sarkozy.

"I tell you one thing immediately," Platini said. "One day I was invited to dinner by Sarkozy where there was the Prime Minister of Qatar. Mr Sarkozy never asked me during the dinner to vote for Qatar. They invited me to the dinner but they know I will be independent, that I will vote for who I want.

[EKBATAN]

im starting to believe it will happen in Qatar unless the place blows up by then. These guys have waaaaay too much money and will throw everything at it to get this. They pay for all the costs so FIFA is happy about that

whats stupid is forcing ALL the leagues in the world to re arrange.....i mean what a stupid non practical idea....u need more than a month break....a month is just the tournament, u need another month before for preparation....so it will be a 2 month break. The thing is what happens to all the other players and coaches? they're just supposed to hold off their training, games, etc...cuz of stupid Qatar?

[persian-eagle-13]

French will always give a$$ if the price is correct.

[HuSsAiN]

im starting to believe it will happen in Qatar unless the place blows up by then. These guys have waaaaay too much money and will throw everything at it to get this. They pay for all the costs so FIFA is happy about that

whats stupid is forcing ALL the leagues in the world to re arrange.....i mean what a stupid non practical idea....u need more than a month break....a month is just the tournament, u need another month before for preparation....so it will be a 2 month break. The thing is what happens to all the other players and coaches? they're just supposed to hold off their training, games, etc...cuz of stupid Qatar?

the deciscion won't change, it's been given to qatar and platini/blatter are loving the idea.

The winter world cup is just going to ruin everything, that means you will be in the 'middle of your domestic season' then finish in June, then pre-season will start late etc.. it's going to be a problem..

[KC McElroy]

im starting to believe it will happen in Qatar unless the place blows up by then. These guys have waaaaay too much money and will throw everything at it to get this. They pay for all the costs so FIFA is happy about that

whats stupid is forcing ALL the leagues in the world to re arrange.....i mean what a stupid non practical idea....u need more than a month break....a month is just the tournament, u need another month before for preparation....so it will be a 2 month break. The thing is what happens to all the other players and coaches? they're just supposed to hold off their training, games, etc...cuz of stupid Qatar?

It's not practical at all. I think they will have maybe a friendly tournament in the winter in qatar. Maybe some World Cup participants will take part as preparation for the summer World Cup that will be held elsewhere.

[EKBATAN]

yea i just dont know how they're gonna get soooo many leagues to agree to this....it ruins planning for the year before, after....just too much bs to deal with. Its not the money issue, but more of a whole planning crisis world wide! all so that we can have a world cup in the stupid desert

[Kiarash]

During winter a World Cup? That is such an horrible idea....not even near the soccer feeling...soccer tournament in the summer is a tradition, you can't break traditions..

And what about the Confederations Cup 2021? That also needs to be played one year before the actual WC starts.


Be omide khoda someone stands up and get Qatar's dirty hands off the World Cup.

[KC McElroy]

During winter a World Cup? That is such an horrible idea....not even near the soccer feeling...soccer tournament in the summer is a tradition, you can't break traditions..

And what about the Confederations Cup 2021? That also needs to be played one year before the actual WC starts.


Be omide khoda someone stands up and get Qatar's dirty hands off the World Cup.

Don't worry, it will be moved.

[EKBATAN]

During winter a World Cup? That is such an horrible idea....not even near the soccer feeling...soccer tournament in the summer is a tradition, you can't break traditions..

And what about the Confederations Cup 2021? That also needs to be played one year before the actual WC starts.


Be omide khoda someone stands up and get Qatar's dirty hands off the World Cup.

yea man its typical middle eastern/arab mentallity.....make everyone abide by their rules and stupid ideas...who cares about other people

[Asghar Agha]

"I tell you one thing immediately," Platini said. "One day I was invited to dinner by Sarkozy where there was the Prime Minister of Qatar. Mr Sarkozy never asked me during the dinner to vote for Qatar. They invited me to the dinner but they know I will be independent, that I will vote for who I want.

He lies. Platini is a corrupt person. He was already corrupt in the 80s and never changed. I'm sure he voted for some financial or political reasons. If not, he would never vote for Qatar.

[AllStarMomo]

[KC McElroy]

This is actually a good thing because if qatar does this it will definitely mean the 2022 World Cup will be played elsewhere as all of the real soccer powers will boycott it.

http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/13...ld-cup?cc=5901

FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke has confirmed that playing the 2022 World Cup in Qatar during the winter is a possibility.

Valcke said the request to move the timing of the finals must come from the host -- unless FIFA's executive committee decides that the medical risks of playing the tournament in the extreme heat of June are too great.

Speaking in Edinburgh after the International FA Board meeting, Valcke said: "Qatar has to tell us, 'we want to move the World Cup from summer to winter.' I can tell you there is no working group within FIFA thinking and working on what it means to move the World Cup from summer to winter for the time being."

Valcke said the fact the international calendar had not been fixed beyond 2018 made moving the 2022 finals possible, but that it would need the agreement of all of football -- and so far the Premier League has been fiercely opposed to any interruption of the domestic season.

"The international calendar has been agreed for 2015-2018, meaning that we kept open all potential for period 2019 to 2022. We have time," Valcke said. "We in FIFA have never said never, we have just said we are waiting for [Qatar] to officially ask FIFA to look at the potential to move the World Cup from summer to winter -- and that has not happened yet.

"Qatar is perfectly aware and 2014 is not the deadline - it can be even in 2015. The most important thing is to make sure work with all stakeholders and make sure there is full agreement with all parties, leagues, clubs, and we would have to find eight weeks in the mid-season to play the World Cup."

Valcke said FIFA's executive committee would only make a unilateral decision if there was strong medical evidence in favour of a change.

"The FIFA ExCo has the power to make decisions and if at the FIFA ExCo this issue starts to be a real point for discussion then why not, and then again maybe the FIFA ExCo will say based on medical reports or whatever we really have to look at playing the World Cup not in summer, but in winter," Valcke said.

UEFA president Michel Platini has reiterated his call to move the Qatar tournament to winter, but his counterpart at CONCACAF in north and central America and the Caribbean insists it should remain in the summer.

"Historically, the World Cup is always played in June and I would definitely like the World Cup to be played in June, we accepted it," CONCACAF president Jeffrey Webb said. "We went through a long process regarding that. We all knew the World Cup was going to be played in June and July and as far as I am concerned, that's accepted."

[arash123]

Platini is quoted as saying "what is better for the fans?". Well for starters,maybe moving wc 22 elsewhere!!!

[PouriaAkaBarut]

Noway the premier league will allow a month break.

[KC McElroy]

Noway the premier league will allow a month break.

Yes that was my point. The soccer powers will boycott it and if qatar insists on carrying on with it afterwards you will probably see Zimbabwe and the Solomon Islands playing in the final while in the summer a real World Cup will be taking place elsewhere featuring the regular participants.