Why Qatar will be the most successful Football World Cup host

Qatar, the little Arab nation with a population of a little over 1 million, has outbid the likes of Australia, the United States and South Korea to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The Middle East nation is geographically the smallest and the least populated as well as the lowest ranked country ever to be awarded the right to host the World Cup.

There have been many critical reactions to this decision by the FIFA – complaints about the unbearable summer heat, the alcohol bans, dearth of football related infrastructure, and also the huge lack of social structure and the preparedness for the cultural differences fans might bring in.

But the Qatari Government has promised FIFA a solution for all of those problems.

For starters, Qatar is not a dry country and alcohol can be consumed legally in a few pubs, bars, certain hotel restaurants, and the Pearl island by showing your passport. The question of whether alcohol was allowed to be consumed in additional areas and at the games themselves was asked, and Hassan Abdulla al Thawadi, chief executive of the Qatar 2022 World Cup bid, said the Muslim state would also permit alcohol consumption during the World Cup. A few specific fan-zones will be set up during the event that will provide alcohol for sale.

Sepp Blatter, the FIFA president, has made it clear that there will be no discrimination of any kind during the event, and has the full cooperation of the Qatari government in this matter and that all measures will be taken to ensure the cultural and social habits of the travelling fans will be protected and encouraged.

Qatar, as hosts, also provide extra incentives to non-European nations, as the games will be held in unfamiliar conditions and will level the playing field a bit more. Furthermore, the time zone permits games to be telecast at reasonable hours in most countries. Also, as host, Qatar has automatically qualified, and will be the lowest ranked participant as of now. But by 2022, they will be compelled to improve the quality of football as well as the infrastructure.

The players might be the most benefited with Qatar as the host because of the shorter travel duration between different venues, owing to the small size of the country. This will allow them more time to recover from fatigue and improve performance standards. This ensures the tournament remains highly competitive throughout.

The biggest problem with Qatar as the host is the temperature. During the summer, the temperatures in Qatar can go up to 50 °C (122 °F). But the tiny Arab nation has one of the most unique and amazing solutions to this problem. All the host stadiums possess the technology that will harness the power of the sun’s rays to provide a cool environment for players and fans by converting solar energy into electricity that will then be used to cool both fans and players at the stadiums through specially customized coolers and air conditioners. Such cooling techniques will be able to reduce temperatures from 45 to 25 degrees Celsius (113 to 77 °F), which would be comfortable for players and spectators during matches. The bid also proposes these cooling technologies to be used in fan-zones, training pitches and walkways between metro stations and stadiums!

Along with all of this, the Qatari government is working on creating the most beautiful and unique stadiums, training infrastructure, hotels and travel arrangements. This is going to be one event which the whole world will eagerly look forward to with bated breath. One of the most exciting and beautiful events is on the horizon, and it’s just a matter of time before all the ground breaking innovations come to life!