Qatar has thrown its hat into the ring with a view to hosting the World Cup in 2018 or 2022, it has been revealed.
A senior official from the Qatar Football Association (QFA) told Gulf Times that the Gulf state "has a very good chance of hosting" the event.
”The decision is not up to the Qatar Football Association alone. We are currently waiting for the FIFA letter regarding the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups and then we will take it from there up to the higher authorities,” QFA general secretary Saud Abdulaziz al-Mohannadi said in comments published on Friday.
“Once we have the final approval we will officially announce the bid for the World Cup. The interest is there from our side, but once you take the decision, then there are a lot of commitments and requirements to fulfill.”
Qatar’s bid for the sport’s most prestigious event had been rumoured for a long time but the QFA is now confident that it can beat illustrious competition including England, Australia, Spain and Mexico.
Financial backing for the tournament would be guaranteed and a state-of-the-art railway system is being planned in Doha to be ready in time for the tournament, but al-Mohannadi added that new stadiums would need to spring up to accommodate the influx of foreign fans.
“We are not exactly ready, we need to build some new stadiums and expand some existing ones, but at the moment it is too early to go into the exact details," he told the paper.
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/542104-qatar-announces-interest-in-hosting-world-cup
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