Heat no obstacle to hosting finals – Qatar

With its eyes set on hosting the 2022 World Cup, Qatar is trying to convince a team of FIFA inspectors visiting since Tuesday that it can overcome the scorching heat by cooled carbon neutral stadiums.

“All the stadiums presented in our portfolio are environmentally friendly as they use advanced technology with zero Carbon Dioxide emmissions,” president of Qatar 22 Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani told reporters.

“We will honour our promise to provide air-conditioned stadiums in the country where temperatures exceed 45 degrees celsius in summer,” Sheikh Mohammed said in a joint press conference with the head of FIFA’s delegation, Chilean Football Federation president Harold Mayne-Nicholls.

On the first day of their visit, the delegation attended a local league match at the one of the emirate’s first air-conditioned football fields named Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.

“Climate has never been an issue for Qatar,” the 2022 bid committee’s executive director Hassan al-Thawadi had said earlier.

“The experience of air-conditioned stadiums has succeeded a while ago and we are preparing to start a second generation of air-conditioned stages which will be solar powered,” he said.

The cooling will not be restricted to the football fields but will cover the open spaces around the stadiums, he added.

Qatar launched its bid in May, emphasising the theme that to award football’s showcase event to a Middle East country for the first time would promote better understanding of the region.

Countries currently bidding to host the 2018 event are the United States, England, Russia, Spain-Portugal and Belgium-Netherlands.

Bids for 2022 have been received from Australia, England, the Belgium-Netherlands, Japan, South Korea, Qatar, Russia, Spain-Portugal and the United States.