European clubs submit proposal to hold 2022 World Cup in May-June

FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter had insisted that the 2022 World Cup would be held in Qatar

According to the European Club Association (ECA), the 2022 FIFA World Cup should be played in the months of May and June. FIFA had initially backed a winter World Cup in Qatar, but that would affect the schedules of all major European Leagues whose seasons run from August to May.

The ECA is a representative body formed in 2008 and comprises more than 200 top clubs in Europe with founding memebers such as Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City and PSG are also members and each of the 53 countries in UEFA are represented by at least one club.

Tournament in May-June would be ideal for players and fans: ECA

Last month, FIFA had announced that the tournament would likely be held in January-February or November-December in 2022, the primary reason being the soaring temperatures in the Middle East between the months of May and September.

But according to the proposal by the ECA and the European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL), the World Cup could be played safely during the onset of summer in May-June. The proposal outlines how they can conduct the tournament in those months while ensuring there is no risk to players, fans and officials with the help of cooling systems in the stadium.

They claim that this would have minimal impact on the 2021/22 or 2022/23 seasons. As it stands, both seasons would see a revised calendar if FIFA accept this proposal. This proposal would also not have any impact on the Club World Cup or the Confederations Cup.

And they also claim that it wouldn’t come in the way of the 2022 Winter Olympics or coincide with the holy month of Ramadan which ends on 2 May.