A World Cup that takes place between November and December is a curious event. Here we show you the first signs of a change of the next soccer contest

If your birthday comes round between July and December, it is possible that in the next soccer World you will be five years older and not four as it is with each FIFA World Cup. If you are very fond of football or of this particular event, you may not travel at the end of the year with the same schedule, especially if your country has the chance to play the final, originally planned for December 18, because this is a time when the one thing that many people think about is party and sharing with the family.

Leer en español: Qatar 2022: Un Mundial de Fútbol que retará lo tradicional

These are just some examples of what can change in the itinerary of a Latin American fan around the upcoming world soccer championship that is going to be held in Qatar in 2022. There are four years to go and it may be too early to measure the magnitude of this change for the fans of Latin America, as well as in the clubs calendars and eliminatory ones because the FIFA still has not pronounced on the matter. However, here we show you some changes already planned by the organizers of the next World Cup for the benefit of the soccer fans.

According to MercoPress, FIFA president Gianni Infantino said at a congress held in March 2018 in Lima, Peru, that "the Qatar World Cup will be played in November and December 2022. That has already been decided." He explained that this is mainly due to the climatic conditions of the Asian country due to its high temperatures in the middle of the year and for the athletes to participate in adequate sports conditions, as is also reflected by El Clarín.

Other important aspects pointed out by Infantino are, on the one hand, the issue of the players who play in European soccer and, on the other hand, the possibility that the World Cup will begin to be played at the end of the year. "Players who play in Europe are not going to reach the end of the season to play the World Cup as it usually happens, but two or three months after starting the season. Then they will arrive better and ready to play," he said, according to MercoPress.

Finally, the FIFA president was very clear to ensure that the modification of dates will only be for the edition of Qatar 2022, whose tentative date is between November 21 and December 18, and do not contemplate repeating it, because in United 2026 would return to its usual dates: June and July.

A different World

There is no doubt that the event and its surroundings: players, leaders, sponsors, and fans, will face something new. In statements published by Publimetro, the director of the Organising Committee for Qatar 2022, Fatma Al Nuaimi, stressed that the event will be an opportunity to change the thinking of the Western world in relation to the Qatari and Asian culture in general.

"People will be able to attend two games on the day, just like in the Olympic Games where you have everything in the same city, you do not have to travel, you do not need to change hotels, you do not have to go from one city to another, it will be a relief for athletes and fans who may have a completely new experience," said Al Nuaimi.

The leader addressed another relevant aspect of the World Cup: alcohol. This is important since in Qatar the consumption of alcohol is prohibited because the Koran, the book that Muslims consider as their authority, prohibits the use of fermented beverages, according to Explore God.

Read also: Qatar 2022: These are the young players who could be part of the Colombian National Team

The first step in Russia 2018

For his part, Qatari functionary Nasser Al Khater told ESPN that "what we saw in Moscow, which has two stadiums, was that a city can quickly be overwhelmed by crowds. The fact that we're going to have the fans of the 32 teams practically in the same city, I think it will be electrifying."

Doha will be the main venue of the World Cup at the end of 2022, with the particularity that eight stadiums will be in that city and in nearby towns, at most one hour away. What does that involve? ESPN explains that the World Cup will gather unimaginable numbers of people for 28 days, in a city with more than two million inhabitants.

"We want this to take over Doha," said Al Khater. "After seeing the people and how they are mobilized, and imagining how the flow of traffic will be in Qatar, we are reconsidering where to make our Fan Fest," he added to the aforementioned international sports channel.

Qatar has contemplated the central park Al Bidda, next to the Bay of Doha, to carry out its Fan Fest; but to observe how the Moscow one worked in this edition, it is possible that there will be a change. "It is in the wrong place," Al Khater acknowledged. "In reality, it would obstruct the free movement of people," the leader told ESPN.

Qatar 2022 does not rest on its laurels. In fact, the organizers sent a delegation of 180 employees to evaluate details of how an event of this magnitude is organized. The Fan ID, which is a photographic credential that exempts the bearer from processing a visa, is one of the ideas applied in Russia 2018 that may be repeated in the next World Cup.

The objective of the procedure is for the authorities of the host country to monitor all the people entering the stadiums and minimize the risks in terms of security. In the same ESPN article, Al Khater congratulated the World in Russia 2018 and said that it was an impeccable world. "We will have a difficult precedent to overcome," he said.

LatinAmerican Post | Onofre Zambrano

Translated from "Qatar 2022: Un Mundial de Fútbol que retará lo tradicional"