WHO KNOWS IF Ireland will be there but Uefa president Michel Platini remains hopeful that the World Cup in 2022 in Qatar will be held in early winter.
Debate has long been held over whether or not the tournament in Qatar should be moved to the latter part of the year to avoid the intense heat of the summer months in the Middle East.
Platini has maintained his stance that a winter competition would be for the benefit of fans and players alike, and has insisted that calling a temporary hiatus in the European domestic season would not be a problem.
“I hope it will be held in winter. We have to go to Qatar when it is good for everybody to participate. What is better for the fans?” the 57-year-old told the London Evening Standard. ”Did you see in South Africa? It was freezing and nobody could go anywhere to a fan club or anything. You had to stay in the hotel.
“In 10 years we can manage to decide how we can postpone the season for one month. January is difficult for the World Cup because you have the Winter Olympic Games. If we stop (the European season) from November 2 to December 20, 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.”
There had been mutterings within football’s governing bodies that the votes for the host nations of the upcoming tournaments would have to be retaken, given the corruption scandals which have blighted FIFA in recent months.
However, Platini insists that such a measure would be difficult to implement, and that his vote would remain unchanged regardless.
“To revoke World Cup decisions will be difficult. And, if there is another vote, I will vote the same way: for Russia and Qatar,” he said.
“I voted for Qatar because it was time to go to a country in that part of the world. They bid five times.
When asked whether he voted under the instruction of then-France president Nicolas Sarkozy, he said: “No, no, no. I tell you one thing immediately. 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.”
