Following the conclusion of a two-day executive committee meeting, FIFA President Sepp Blatter allayed any fears that Qatari World Cup organizers may have had about possiblychanging the destination of the 2022 World Cup. “The Fifa World Cup 2022 will be played in Qatar. There you have it,” Blatter said. The other big takeaway from the meeting was that the decision aboutmoving the tournament to the winter in order to avoid Qatar’s searing summer temperatures would not be taken until after next year’s World Cup in Brazil.
As theGuardian points out, FIFA has effectively said there is no way Qatar will be stripped of the tournament regardless of the outcome of FIFA investigator Michael Garcia’songoing corruption investigation, or continued calls from international groups to move the tournament due to human rights abuses in the Middle Eastern country.
Blatter also indicated thatthe decision on whether to move Qatar 2022 to the winter might not be made until early 2015, which, ironically, is when the next elections for FIFA President are set to take place.