The Qatari World Cup committee would never dream of suggesting the tournament should be held in the winter.
But Ronald de Boer, a Dutchman who served as an advisor to the bid, gladly will.
“A tournament like the World Cup can benefit from players not being so burned out after a long season,” he said at the Leaders in Football Conference in London. “You have everyone well-adjusted and physically fit (in the winter), and get the best out of the players. So you see a better tournament. I think there’s a big possibility in that so why not try it?”
Jordanian Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein, FIFA vice president over seeing Asia, jumped on board as well, saying it would “definitely make sense.”
Here’s the thing: It probably does. Qatar is -- obvious statement of the week alert -- ridiculously hot in the summer, perhaps dangerously so for footballers and fans. Even if the mythical stadium cooling systems that do not yet exist get invented by 2022, there’s still the whole thing of people hanging out in brutal heat during the day, etc., etc., etc. Staging the World Cup in the winter is the best idea.
So, do it. FIFA clearly doesn’t care about what anyone thinks. Michel Platini, one of the major driving forces behind the switch to winter, is going to be president soon anyway. Let’s move it and move on. The entire ordeal already reeks of ridiculous farce.