Earlier this month, we reported that lawyer and investigator Michael Garcia submitted his World Cup report to FIFA regarding the 2022 Qatar World Cup bid. Today, FIFA executive board member Theo Zwanziger came out and said that he believes that Qatar will be stripped of its right to host the world’s favorite tournament.
"Personally, I believe that the 2022 World Cup will not take place in Qatar in the end," he told Sport Bild. "The doctors say - and I have demanded to have this registered in the records - that they can't be held responsible for a summer World Cup held in those conditions," he said.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter said earlier this month, at a meeting discussing new dates for the 2022 World Cup, that soccer’s governing body wouldn’t have a decision on the matter until later in the month. He also tweeted this following FIFA's inagural Ethics in Sport Summit:
Everyone in the global football community has a responsibility to act ethically. Football fans rightly demand this. FIFA has taken the lead.
— Joseph S Blatter (@SeppBlatter) September 19, 2014
It’s interesting that Zwanziger said the main cause for concern was the heat as opposed to the investigation of possible bribery, allegedly committed to land Qatar the tournament. That isn’t the only controversial matter surrounding the tournament. The slave labor trade and working conditions making the tournament happen is another cause for concern.
Organizers in Qatar insist they will accommodate players and fans and that their air conditioning technology (which is still in its developmental stages) will keep World Cup goers cool.
"The World Cup not only takes place in the stadiums," Zwanziger said. "Fans from all over the world will be out in the heat. The first life-threatening incident would immediately lead to public prosecution. And no one in on the FIFA executive board would want to answer for that."
A FIFA spokesperson came out and said that Zwanziger’s assessment was just a matter of his personal opinion and had nothing to do with the actual decision.
Officials have been discussing the possibility of holding the tournament in the winter as opposed to its typical June/July slot. That news created some controversy as domestic leagues from around the world were concerned about its effect on their schedules.
Michael Garcia speaking at FIFA's inagural Ethics in Sports Summit. (Photo:@RobinHodess | Twitter)
On the other side, Qatar World Cup chiefs still say there is no possibility of the tournament being moved to a different country. Nasser Al Khater, the director or communications for the Qatar World Cup, said that “Qatar will host the FIFA World Cup in 2022,” and that the words spoken by Zwanziger were “reflect[ing] his personal opinion and not that of FIFA.”
The words from the Qatari camp aren’t shocking. They have been firm every since the start of the investigation that they never did anything wrong and promise that the conditions at the World Cup will be suitable for everyone involved.
Earlier this month, when Michael Garcia’s report was submitted, it was said that it would not be made public - which is a decision that hasn’t received much support. Now, we are 8 days from the end of the month and 4 days away from a FIFA executive committee commencing in Zurich. Will we have our answer by October 1st? As we’ve said during this whole process, only time will tell. But, if there is someone’s word we will take, we’re going with Zwanziger.
