UEFA President Platini Contemplating 2022 Winter World Cup

Michel Platini, sales the president of European soccer’s governing body UEFA, has said he would be happy to reschedule his continent’s club schedule to allow the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to be played in the winter.

Platini is considering the change as matches in the summer in Qatar would come under sweltering summer temperatures and would subsequently be unfair on players and spectators.

“We have to think about everybody, what would be better for the World Cup in Qatar,” Platini said in an interview with Al-Jazeera on Friday. “How you can bring the people and say you will go in June (to) Qatar when it’s 50 degrees?

“The people, they come (for) three weeks or two weeks with 60 degrees, they (would) never go outside the hotel. It (is) not correct.”

Not only would playing the World Cup in the winter involve moving the dates of the Champions League and Europa League — UEFA’s club competitions — it would also forced European leagues to change their schedules.

However, Platini said the World Cup “is the best moment in football.”

“I think we have to adapt (to) when is the best moment and where is the best moment to play this World Cup in Qatar,” the former French forward said.

Qatar beat the United States, Australia, Japan and South Korea for the right to stage the 2022 tournament and will become the smallest country to host the World Cup.

“For me, I voted for Qatar because I think it (is) nice to go to another part of the world, with people who never received the World Cup,” said Platini, who could succeed Sepp Blatter as FIFA president in 2015. “They lost five times with Morocco, with Egypt. And I think it was nice to come to Russia in Europe (in 2018). They’ve never received (the World Cup) in the east of Europe.”