Zinedine Zidane Named Ambassador Of Qatar's 2022 World Cup Bid
Former France international and Real Madrid star Zinedine Zidane has been appointed as ambassador of Qatar's 2022 World Cup bid.
- “Football is for everyone,” Zidane was quoted as saying in an official statement.
- “When I think of all the youth of the Middle East, what they’re missing is an event like the World Cup. We had the 2010 World Cup in Africa and now it is time for the Middle East.”
- Qatar’s bid is one of nine for the 2022 World Cup finals. Their main opposition is expected to come from Australia, Japan, South Korea and thr United States.
It remains to be seen whether Qatar’s bid has a big chance though. The head of a FIFA inspection team hinted on Thursday the nation’s small size could prove to be too much of an obstacle to host a World Cup.
- A three-time FIFA World Player of the Year, Zidane captained the French National Team, helping guide the team to the 1998 World Cup title, scoring two goals in the final against Brazil in Paris, where he was named FIFA World Cup Final Man of the Match.
- Two years later, he led France to victory in the 2000 European Championship and was named player of the tournament. Zidane appeared in 108 matches for the French National Team between 1994 and 2006, scoring 31 goals.
- In his club career, Zidane played for Cannes, Bordeaux, Juventus and Real Madrid. With Zidane at the helm, Real Madrid won the 2002 UEFA Champions League. In 628 career appearances in Ligue 1, Serie A, and La Liga, Zidane scored 128 goals.
- In 2004, the UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll labeled Zidane the best European footballer of the past 50 years.
- In the mean time Qatar’s size, rather than its fierce summer heat or the fact it is an Islamic country, could rule it out of contention to host the World Cup in 2022, the head of FIFA’s inspection team hinted on Thursday.
- Qatar would be the smallest host country since Uruguay staged the inaugural tournament in 1930 but has stressed the advantages of a compact World Cup, with none of the 12 stadiums more than an hour’s travelling time from one another.
- However, Harold Mayne-Nicholls, the head of FIFA’s six-man inspection team, who have spent three days in the tiny Gulf State, said hosting the event in Qatar “would pose a number of logistical challenges”.
- He added: “From an organisational point of view, Qatar has the potential to host an international sporting event such as the FIFA World Cup.”
- “So far we have only had one such tournament with a similar (compact) concept and that was the first World Cup ever staged in Uruguay in 1930.
- “Then there were only 13 teams playing all their matches in two stadiums in the same city. That easily worked out 80 years ago but the scope of the event, as we all know, has changed dramatically.
- “Nowadays we have 32 teams and the last edition in South Africa had more than 80,000 accredited people including 15,000 media and hundreds of thousands of football fans travelling to the host country.
- “Currently, there is not enough accommodation and transportation but you assured us you are prepared to change this and lots of development plans are underway.”