The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) has chosen Host Broadcast Services (HBS) to serve as host broadcaster of the 2015 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, which will be held in the Parisian suburb of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines from 18 to 22 February.
For the first time in the event’s history, its production will feature live onboard cameras.
HBS will operate more than 13 cameras at the event with a team of 72 staff. HBS has appointed Euro Media France to provide the technical platform.
The HDTV signal will be provided to broadcasters worldwide. The UCI and its exclusive media rights partner Infront Sports & Media have distributed the rights to more than 100 countries and territories. Over 300 media representatives are accredited onsite.
For the first time ever at a UCI Track Cycling World Championships, miniaturised cameras installed on the bicycles’ saddle tubes will transmit live images of the race to viewers worldwide, as well as to the Velodrome’s giant screen.
“The team and I are all delighted to be part of the 2015 Championships and excited by the enthusiasm and innovations HBS and the UCI have brought to the sport,” said Steve Docherty, event director at HBS. “It’s always a thrill to be able to do something unprecedented.”
The live on-board cameras will be used in various events over the five days of the competition. The cameras will be installed on competition bikes, feeding live images to the production truck located just outside the venue.
Radio frequency (RF) transmission experts Broadcast RF will supply the cameras, transmitters, specialised operators and bring their technical partner VideoSys Broadcast.
Following initial research and development focused on making the camera and RF transmitter as safe, compact and light as possible, HBS organised a number of tests served to establish the project’s viability.
The French National Team participated in the first of these tests, with a second one taking place at the UCI’s headquarters in Aigle, Switzerland. The combined weight of the camera and transmitter has been reduced from 300 grams to just 199 grams.
“The live on-board camera is the angle that has been missing from track cycling coverage, and it’s one that will delight both the hardcore fans and viewers new to the sport,” says HBS’ director or production Dan Miodownik.
“Getting to this point requires significant technical integration, but with the expertise from our technical partner Broadcast RF and the commitment and vision from UCI, we are ready to bring something completely new to track cycling coverage.”
HBS provided broadcast consultancy and on-site support for the last two editions of the UCI Track Cycling World Championships, in Minsk, Belarus and Cali, Colombia.
A fully owned subsidiary of Infront Sports & Media, HBS works on many other events and has been host broadcaster of FIFA World Cup since 2002.
Category: Event Management
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HBS brings onboard cameras to 2015 UCI Track World Champs
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IOC praises Lillehammer 2016’s young team with one year to go
As Lillehammer celebrated one year to go until the Winter Youth Olympic Games (YOG), its young organisers were praised by the event’s owner and custodian, the International Olympic Committee.
Celebrations began in Lillehammer on Wednesday night with His Royal Highness Crown Prince Haakon of Norway unveiling an OMEGA countdown clock showing 365 days to go.
Speaking at the ceremony, IOC vice president Nawal El Moutawakel said: “This is truly a Games by young people for young people and a big thank-you goes to the tremendous efforts of the young and talented local Organising Committee.”
Lillehammer 2016 CEO Tomas Holmestad said: “Every one of the next 365 days now counts to making Lillehammer 2016 a huge success. We have an amazing team of young, talented staff and I know we will deliver a unique Winter Youth Olympic Games.”
The festivities will continue for several days in Lillehammer, Hamar and Gjøvik, with cultural spectacles, a YOG-themed ice hockey match and the “Sjogg Film Festival” in the centre of the city.
Sjogg, the Norwegian word for snow, is also the name of the Lillehammer 2016 mascot.
During the Games, Lillehammer, Hamar and Gjøvik will also host “learn and share” activities, which the IOC says is designed to provide guidance on Olympic values, the benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle and “how to be true champions on and off the field of play”.
During the unveiling of the clock, the Crown Prince and El Moutawakel were joined by Angela Ruggiero, Chair of the IOC coordination commission and Norwegian Minister for Culture Thorhild Widvey.
Earlier in the day, El Moutawakel and Ruggiero took part in activities including a school sports day and a session on the ice, where Olympic ice hockey champion Ruggiero provided a coaching session to local youngsters.
Lillehammer hosted the Winter Olympic Games in 1994.
“We have an Olympic Games legacy under our belts, and now we will create the legacy of Lillehammer 2016,” said Holmestad.
Lillehammer 2016, the second Winter Youth Olympic Games, will take place from 12 to 21 February 2016, featuring more than 1,000 top athletes between the ages of 15 and 18 from over 70 countries.
The athletes will compete in the same seven sports as those on the Olympic programme, plus some new additions such as Monobob, snowboard cross and cross-country cross as well as mixed-gender and mixed-National Olympic Committee competitions.
“With its exciting sports and unique spirit, this will certainly be a wonderful and unforgettable YOG,” said El Moutawakel.
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The Sports Consultancy hires Glasgow 2014 big hitter
The Sports Consultancy’s ability to offer commercial services to rights holders has been boosted significantly with the appointment of key figure in Glasgow 2014’s sponsorship programme.
Marc Hope has spent the last four years with Sports Marketing and Management, where he was embedded in the Organising Committee of Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games playing a pivotal role on the successful achievement of almost 50 sponsors across three tiers.
He will lead on a significant investment into The Sports Consultancy’s rights marketing business, offering commercial services to rights holder and event clients.
“Rights marketing is a core part of our DNA, it’s where we originated and it will build and augment our strong commercial focus as well as add depth to our commercial and strategic consulting services to government and venue clients,” said co-managing director Angus Buchanan.
“In Marc we have found someone who shares our vision and with whom we can work with to build a prominent rights marketing practice. The results he has achieved in his career to date, most recently in his role selling commercial rights for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, firmly establishes Marc as one of the leading practitioners in the industry.”
Before working on Glasgow 2014, Marc spent a decade with Fasttrack, which later became part of CSM, where he led the rights marketing team over a range of Olympic sports and major international events headed by UK Athletics.
Marc landed the multi-year title sponsorship deals for the London Youth Games (LYG), for which he remains vice chairman. He also served as a non-executive board director of GB Taekwondo during their London Olympic cycle 2010-2013, which saw the sport achieve Olympic gold.
Marc will be working closely with Buchanan and his co-founder Robert Datnow in developing the rights marketing practice.
“I have followed with great interest how Angus and Robert have developed The Sports Consultancy into one of the leading consultancies operating in the sports industry today,” said Hope.
“It is a privilege to join their innovative team and to have the opportunity to build a new rights marketing division harnessing the company’s reputation and contacts along with its existing in-house commercial and legal experience.”
Further appointments of senior brand consultants and rights sales specialists are expected to follow.
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How to host the MTV EMA awards
Ben Avison: I was fortunate enough to be in Glasgow for the MTV EMAs – what a fantastic show!
Bruce Gillmer: It was a great show, we are very proud. The city was great too, it was a good partnership – it was a good one for sure, glad you were there.
Ben Avison: What qualities is Viacom looking for in a host city of the MTV EMAs?
Bruce Gillmer: First and foremost, we are attracted to cities that have rich musical heritage and robust music fans – that lights up the scoreboard for us. Cities that are interesting culturally are attractive.
Also a city that’s easy to travel in and out of from a variety of different cities around the world – easy to get to from the US and the UK, not too far off the beaten path.
Something that is of huge importance to us is the presence of a proper venue to stage the event.
Ben Avison: What are the main technical requirements of a venue to host the MTV EMAs?
Bruce Gillmer: The EMAs is quite a big event, so generally speaking we look for an arena that can hold approximately 10,000 fans and VIPs. We prefer a structure that’s on the newer side, maybe built in the last 10 years.
The Hydro this year was incredible. We got tremendous feedback from the artists, fans and VIPs. It was a comfortable environment with very good sightlines, no matter where you are sitting, for taking in the various different staging that we had around the venue.
And then there are all the other ancillary bits – a dressing room area that can support a red carpet pre-show and so on. The newer venues tend to be much more appropriate for an event of this scale.
Ben Avison: How can hosting the MTV EMAs benefit a city?
Bruce Gillmer: There’s the obvious economic boost that an event brings to a city, with several people travelling in from all around the world.
But really we think the value is in the amount of exposure on an international level that the event brings to the host city. There’s all of the pre-show marketing and promo and press, and then the broadcast of the EMAs itself reaches over 160 territories around the world – it’s a massive audience on every platform. In our minds that’s key – it’s the international exposure.
Also, the EMAs is synonymous with being super-relevant. A city that’s hosting the EMAs will be seen as a forward-looking, exciting location.
Ben Avison: What opportunities are there for cities outside Europe to host MTV events?
Bruce Gillmer: We host a variety of events around the world and we’ve got several award shows in addition to the EMAs, starting with the MAMAs, which is the Mother Africa Music Awards that takes place in Africa each year.
In the past it’s been in Lagos but most recently in Durban. The next host will be another exciting city in South Africa that will prove to be most advantageous from a staging production perspective. The other locations were extremely interesting from a cultural standpoint.
We have the VMAJs (Video Music Awards Japan) which is our awards show for MTV Japan, in Tokyo.
We also produce a variety of World Stage events around the world, which is not an awards per se – it’s basically a collection of artists, both international and local. It’s in Malaysia each year; we’ve been to quite a few cities around Mexico; we also host several events throughout Europe. We reach every major cluster of the world with our events.
It’s not just the obvious locations. We go for keen interest from a city or from a partner to go to a certain location, as long as it makes sense from a staging and production perspective and we can get what we need and we’ve got robust audience and excited music fans, then we’ll consider.
Ideas for events sometimes come to us from external partners or cities. In the case of the MAMAs, we staged an event also on South Africa a couple of years ago – the MTV Africa All Stars – where we had a vast array of artists from different genres from all over the continent – just. We also brought Snoop down, which was really cool and there was a lot of interaction between the artists.
So we’ve literally been to every corner of the world.
Ben Avison: How important are the EMAs to the MTV brand?
Bruce Gillmer: We do a vast array of events throughout the year; they are all important and they all serve a purpose and they all quite frankly support our brand and help us keep connected to the audience, which is vital.
The EMAs is really the crowning jewel and it really does personify the MTV brand. It’s always cutting edge; we hope that it’s always funny and fun and irreverent – all these characteristics are part of the DNA for the MTV brand. It’s really our opportunity to bring the brand to life in one glorious evening.
Ben Avison: The next MTV EMAs is in Milan, isn’t it?
Bruce Gillmer: Correct, we’re extremely excited about that. We announced that partnership as we were leaving Glasgow so really looking forward to that experience. The city of Milan really seems to be excited as well and we look forward to it.
Ben Avison: Have you had much interaction with the World Expo people there?
Bruce Gillmer: Not a tremendous amount just yet but I assume as the weeks and months go on we will for sure, because we are tied in and meant to be the exclamation point to the Expo if you like. We always look to bring the fun with us.
This interview first appeared in the Winter 2014/15 issue of HOST CITY magazine -
Luis Figo strikes to break up FIFA’s power
Luis Figo was the first of the candidates for the FIFA presidency to launch his manifesto today, proposing radical changes to an organisation that he says has deteriorated under the current leadership and suffers from a “negative reaction”.
The retired Portuguese footballer pledged to redistribute at least half of FIFA’s funds equally around the world to develop football at the grass roots level.
With the aim of establishing good governance, Figo wants to establish a FIFA Football Council to advise the president and Executive Committee, as well as an independent governance, audit and compliance committee with powers to “control the actions of the president”.
He also announced a proposal to increase the number of members on the Executive Committee, with equal representation from each of the continental confederations.
In a bid to boost the global appeal of his candidacy, he also announced plans to increase the number of non-European teams competing in the World Cup.
Figo’s and FIFA’s funding
Drawing on his own life story, Figo revealed that his campaign is entirely self-funded. “I grew up in working class of Lisbon, playing on streets,” said Figo. “My life changed through the power of football and I am lucky to be an independent man. I don’t owe anyone anything; this means I can serve FIFA in the interest of football, for football.
“Thank God I’ve had a long and successful career. When you retire, you need to have a balance – it’s on a smaller scale than FIFA’s budget but the way I’ve managed my finances shows that I can stand on my own two feet. I have enough money to pay for my candidature.”
Figo plans to redistribute FIFA’s revenues to enable children all over the world to get a chance to become professional footballers.
“I was very lucky and fortunate to play and get training from an early age but I know this opportunity does not exist for many children across the world,” he said.
“This is why I propose radical changes to the way FIFA redistributes its membership payments.
“I want to see at least 50 per cent of FIFA funds spent on grass roots football and to increase the size of the funds available.”
This amounts to US$ 2.5 bn. He also wants to distribute an additional US$1bn directly to the member associations over a four year period.
Currently, the member associations receive less than US$ 4m per four years.
He questioned FIFA’s current approach of setting aside a US$1.5bn reserve pool to cover the possibility of the World Cup being cancelled. “This money is not FIFA money – it is the member associations’,” he said.
“US $5m is enough to cover the operational cost of FIFA.”
This offer of cash may help Figo to gain backing for his campaign from the 205 member associations around the world that elect FIFA’s president on 29th May.
In another bid to boost the appeal of his campaign outside Europe, Figo also said he would like to increase the number of teams competing in the World Cup, without increasing Europe’s participation.
“I believe we should consider proposals to expand the competition to a 40 or even 48-team World Cup,” he said. “Both these options are feasible with an extra three to four days of tournament play.”
Structural changes to restore trust
Central to his campaign is rebuilding trust in FIFA.
“In the last few months and years we’ve come to realise that the FIFA image has deteriorated.
In Brazil, during the most important sport competition the World Cup, I could see protests against the organisation – and this was in a country that loves football deeply.
“I could see the reaction to the president of the organisation – I could see quite a negative reaction. This is not an appropriate image.
“When I started to look at all the news about scandals I decided that something needed to change.”
The changes that Figo proposes are major and structural.
“There must be transparency. My proposal is to change structures, so there will be a wider consultation with members.
“In the different confederations, we will organise meetings between 10 and 15 member associations… and the summaries of those strategic meetings will be distributed and passed on to the board.”
He also announced plans to establish a new FIFA Football Council to advise the FIFA president and the Executive Committee on issues including the calendar and format of events as well as the laws of the game and football development.
This council would have a moderating role over hosting decisions.
“It is also important to maintain decisions within the council in terms of which countries go on to organise the World Cup,” he said.
On the issue of the controversy and investigations surrounding the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, he acknowledged that there are reports of “irregularities that have taken place, reports not made public.”
But indicative of his aim to achieve global appeal, he did not support any of these claims, saying “If there are no irregularities, I don’t think Qatar should be prejudiced [against].”
He also proposes to merge the existing ethics and disciplinary committees to create a new governance, audit and compliance committee.
“For there to be transparency, the governance committee would have to be a fully independent committee from the council and also from the executive committee, and therefore that they could control the actions of the president.
“With these measures defining the different responsibilities and powers of each body, I think we would have the right measures for transparency within the organisation.”
The composition of the Executive Committee would also become a more level playing field with equal representation internationally. Each continental confederation would have one seat per ten member associations, with an additional seat for member associations that have won the World Cup, with a limit of eight seats per confederation.
With six confederations each bringing up to eight members, this would represents a major increase on the current Executive Committee membership of just 27.
Can he win it?
Figo chose to launch his bid in London, with the venue for the press conference switched from Stamford Bridge to Wembley Stadium at 24 hours’ notice.
“London is a global city and Wembley is an emblematic football space. There is no better place to present my ideas to the world,” he said.
Figo’s candidacy was nominated by six European associations. Whether he will be able to gain support from the 205 member associations, the vast majority of whom are said to have unwavering support for the incumbent president Sepp Blatter, remains to be seen.
“Mr Blatter, well I respect him, he has been leading the organisation for many years. He has had many positive achievements for football and for the organisation but a point has reached where change has needed.”
Figo’s other competitors in the presidential race are Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan and Michael Van Praag of the Netherlands.
“Looking at the other candidates, we have some good ideas, someone who is in the Executive Committee and who knows how the organisation works internally. Also the Dutch FA president I know and respect very much; he has a lot of experience.”
He denied suggestions that he might step aside to support a single challenger to Blatter.
“My idea is right now is to run to the end, to see as many people as possible regarding the presidency and to convince them with my ideas.
The president of FIFA will be elected at the FIFA Congress on 29th May.
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Securing major events has never been more challenging
The challenge of bidding for and hosting major international sport events is one that no city or country should take lightly. Significant time, effort and most importantly, resources, are required to host any major sport event successfully and the need to invest heavily in these precious commodities, even when planning to bid for an event, should not be underestimated.
The IOC’s proposals put forward as part of the ‘Olympic Agenda 2020’ process, as well as the ongoing questions surrounding 2018/2022 FIFA World Cup bidding process, have thrust the issue of how international federations and major events rights holders manage their bid process firmly into the public consciousness.
And as the demand from sponsors and commercial investors to reach out to new markets increases and more events are being created and hosted in more countries, it is clear that the demands of hosting a safe, secure and successful major sport event are growing in scale and complexity.
But what does this mean though for one of the most fundamental areas of hosting a major event – safety and security? As sport enters what is arguably a golden era for innovation and creativity, is the approach to safety and security moving at the same pace? What exactly do cities and countries need to consider when preparing themselves to bid for or host an event?
These are important questions that sport, as well as many cities and countries, have to ask themselves over the next few years and at the ICSS, we have committed ourselves to answer the questions currently being asked about how to effectively safeguard events, as well as identifying new innovative ways to protect them.
When bidding for an event like a FIFA World Cup or Olympic Games, one of the main challenges to safety and security is that the bidding phase usually covers a two year period, with these events normally awarded seven years before the event even takes place.
As a result, this presents a number of challenges when it comes to security. Throughout an event lifecycle, the length of time between bidding and delivery could see one – or even two – changes in government, not to mention significant changes in the threats facing the event or region. And with the lifespan of new technology usually lasting around three years, what may seem ‘innovative’ or new when planning security in the bid phase could be severely outdated by the time the event comes round.
As a result, the changing environment, particularly when it comes to security issues, can have a severe impact on the way major events are planned and budgeted for. Despite many in the industry recognising these challenges, whilst security is considered a fundamental area to host a successful event, all too often safety and security is introduced at the later stages of an event life cycle.
Over any event life cycle, new risks and threats emerge which must be planned and mitigated for at the earliest possible stage into planning competition and non-competition venues, as well as transport and infrastructure around these venues. This is an approach that we apply at the ICSS and strongly advise our partners and clients to incorporate security at the earliest possible stage into their bidding and hosting plan.
For any city or country looking to host an event, it is also essential to ensure a thorough due diligence process when it comes to securing their event and to allow some flexibility in your concept to adapt to any new threats that may emerge. At the same time, it is essential to ensure that proper contingencies are put in place to address the more immediate threats to your event.
One of the other emerging areas that cities and countries should consider is the way social media and digital technology is now used to safeguard major events. Platforms like Facebook and Twitter have not only changed the way people consume sport and communicate with each other at major events but have also revolutionised the way intelligence is gathered and investigations are conducted around an event.
I also expect that over the next few years, the influence of technology on how major events are secured will only become stronger and predict that consumer and retail technology like google glasses, retina scanning and mobile apps will revolutionise the way we interact with security professionals at events.
The challenge of securing major international events has never been greater and the demands of hosting a safe, secure and successful major sport event are growing in scale and complexity.
At the ICSS, we believe first and foremost that safety and security at a major event should be a spectator service, whilst at the same time ensuring maximum security with minimum restrictions to the end user.
We also believe strongly that there is now clear need to develop a more global approach to safeguarding sport and major events and, whilst it is impossible to guarantee 100% security, a well-thought through security concept introduced right from the start of planning can save time, effort, finance and most importantly help to safeguard spectators. -
Qatar official to meet London cybersecurity experts
British minister for the Cabinet Office and paymaster general Francis Maude this week met with senior Qatari officials, one of whom is to visit London next week to meet with experts on cybersecurity.
Maude was in Qatar to discuss transparency, “open government” and cybersecurity – a critical issue for the hosts of major events.
“I chaired the cabinet committee in Britain on the 2012 Olympics and cyber security was a big concern,” Maude told the Gulf Times.
“We want to work very closely with the Qatar government in preparing for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The lessons of how and what we did and all of that, we are very keen to share it with our friends,” he said, adding that Qatar and the UK have “a huge amount of common ground.”
The UK signed a security pact with Qatar last year, under which the two countries security agencies are sharing intelligence.
Information sharing between countries is crucial to maintain the security of data, as the internet transcends national boundaries.
“Governments need to work together in real time, with business and other organisations to share knowledge, information and capability quickly and effectively. Building those close relationships on these matters with our governments is of first importance.”
Bilateral trade between Qatar and the UK is valued at about GB£5.4bn (QAR30bn/US$8.2bn) annually. A British Chamber of Commerce was established in Qatar last month to boost cooperation between Qatari and British small to medium sized enterprises.
“There is a lot of Qatari investment in London and elsewhere in Britain, and we are busy building that up,” said Maude.
“We want Britain to be the best place in the world for companies to do business and we want to work with our friends and colleagues in Qatar for the benefit of both countries.”
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Soccerex postpones Asian Forum to 3 and 4 May
The date of the Soccerex Asian Forum has changed from the 14 to 15 April to the 3 and 4 May, the organisers announced today.
The change was made after the decision by the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) to bring forward their congress to April.
“The aim of the Soccerex Asian Forum is to promote the development of football and football business in Asia, through providing a platform for the whole world of football to gather in Jordan. The rescheduling of the CONCACAF Congress meant that it would be very difficult for many of the decision makers from this important region, and the industry worldwide, to attend the Asian Forum,” said Soccerex CEO Duncan Revie.
“We have long enjoyed a good working relationship with CONCACAF and were delighted to welcome a significant CONCACAF delegation, led by President Jeffrey Webb, to two of our events in 2014.
“With this in mind, following discussion with our partners, we have taken the decision to move the Asian Forum to the new dates of the 3 and 4 May 2015.
“The event will still be held at the same fantastic location on the banks of the Dead Sea and will continue to be hosted in conjunction with the Asian Football Development Project”.
Soccerex Asian Forum will now start just two days after the AFC Congress in Bahrain draws to a close. The close proximity of the Congress in both date and location – Jordan is just a short flight from Bahrain – means that a significant AFC presence is expected at the Asian Forum.
For more information contact Soccerex on +44 208 987 5522 or enquiry@soccerex.com
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Luis Figo welcomes winter World Cup in Qatar
Luis Figo, the retired Portuguese footballer who is running for the presidency of FIFA, has said that the organisation is right to recommend hosting the World Cup in late November and December 2022 – despite the disruption this would cause to the European football leagues.
“The FIFA Task Force recommendation is the right decision for the World Cup,” he said in a statement.
After a six month consultation process, the FIFA task force recommended earlier today that the 2022 World Cup should take place at the end of the year, to avoid clashing with the Olympic Games, Ramadan and the hottest months of the year.
“It has to be played in the best possible conditions for the fans and players who will enjoy a great World Cup atmosphere, and for Qatar who deserve to be put in the position to organise a great event,” Figo said.
“With good will and a sense of solidarity it is always possible to find the right solutions.”
Figo’s endorsement is in contrast to the reaction of other leading European football administrators. The European Professional Football Leagues and the European Clubs Association had been pressing for the World Cup to take place from 5 May to 4 June and will continue to oppose the proposed date change.
Richard Scudamore, the chief executive of the English Premier League, said “It’s the European leagues and European clubs that are going to suffer the most, so it’s very disappointing.”
While Figo has been outspoken about the need for transparency in FIFA, he is taking a very diplomatic stance on the issue of Qatar’s right to host the World Cup. At the launch of the manifesto for his presidential campaign last week, he acknowledged that there are reports of “irregularities that have taken place, reports not made public” but said “If there are no irregularities, I don’t think Qatar should be prejudiced [against].” -
Qatar to host World Cup in December 2022
A FIFA task force charged with identifying the least disruptive timeframe for hosting the 2022 World Cup finished its six month consultation process today with the recommendation that the event should take place at the end of the year.
The task force has identified end of November to the end of December as the most viable period to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
To minimise disruption to domestic leagues, the tournament will take place over a slightly shorter timeframe than usual, depending on the number of venues to be used.
According to unconfirmed reports, the tournament could run right up to Christmas with the final taking place on 23 December.
The dates are set to be confirmed at the next FIFA Executive Committee meeting in Zurich on 19 and 20 March 2015.
“The outcome of the discussions is also a proposed reduced competition days schedule with the exact dates to be defined in line with the match schedule and number of venues to be used for the 22nd edition of football’s flagship event,” said FIFA.
How many venues Qatar will use for the World Cup is still unknown. 12 venues were proposed in the bid; FIFA’s minimum requirement is eight but it would be difficult to shorten the timeframe of the tournament with so few venues.
Reducing the number of teams from 32 or matches from 64 has not been discussed.
Qatar’s bid for the World Cup was based on a summer tournament, but since being awarded the right to host the event it has become evident that the temperatures would be too high, even with advanced cooling technologies.
A FIFA statement also cited the 2022 Winter Olympics and Ramadan as immovable obstacles.
“Given that the two bidding cities for the 2022 Winter Olympics – Almaty (Kazakhstan) and Beijing (China PR) – pledged recently to host the winter games from 4 to 20 February 2022; that the month of Ramadan begins on 2 April in 2022; and that consistently hot conditions prevail from May to September in Qatar, the only remaining effective option is the November/December window,” said FIFA.
Postponing the event until early 2023 is not an option due to legal reasons, FIFA said.
FIFA says the proposal has the full support of all six confederations. However, European leagues have fought hard to avoid the competition taking place during their calendar.
England’s Premier League said in a statement: “The 2022 World Cup was bid for and awarded to Qatar as a summer tournament.
“The prospect of a winter World Cup is neither workable nor desirable for European domestic football.”
FIFA said the task force took on board the considerations of everyone concerned.
“The analysis aimed to find the most viable solution for all stakeholders, covering the likely and possible impacts of conditions on players, staff and fans, as well as the knock-on effect for domestic leagues.
“The representatives of the leagues once again emphasised the impact that a November/December tournament would have on their respective calendars.
“The members deliberated over the various options to determine the least impact on the national and international football calendars.
Discussions are also underway about whether to move some of the qualification matches, with a final phase in early 2022 under consideration.
“We are very pleased that, after careful consideration of the various opinions and detailed discussions with all stakeholders, we have identified what we believe to be the best solution for the 2018-2024 international match calendar and football in general,” said Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, the chair of the FIFA task force.
“It was a challenging task and I want to thank all members of the football community for their productive input and constructiveness in helping to find a solution that we believe can work for everyone.”