Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter: ‘Choosing Qatar was a mistake’ | World Cup 2022

Blatter says so in an interview published today by titles of the Swiss media group Tamedia. “Football and the World Cup are too big for a small country like Qatar,” Blatter said. “It was a wrong choice and I was responsible for it as FIFA president.”

Initially, the executive committee wanted to award the 2018 World Cup to Russia and that of 2022 to the United States, it sounds. “It would have been a gesture of peace if those two political opponents had organized the World Cup one after the other,” said Blatter. Important voices would then have pushed Qatar forward.

Michael van Praag can still remember well that he visited the Belgian king with Mohammed Bin Hammam with a view to the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. ,,We wanted to convince Bin Hammam to opt for the Netherlands and Belgium”, says the former chairman of the KNVB. “In the end he promised to vote for us, but nothing came of it.”

Born in Qatar, Bin Hammam was one of 22 FIFA board members who decided in a vote in Zurich on December 2, 2010 where the 2018 and 2022 World Cups would be held. They chose Russia and Qatar, to the disappointment of the Netherlands and Belgium, who were jointly in the race for the final round of 2018.

,,I didn’t immediately think of corruption,” says Van Praag. “We also lobbied all those 22 voters. I believe we were allowed to give them a present of up to $100. That became a shirt from Orange with signatures and some chocolate. Eight of the 22 FIFA members pledged to vote for us. After the second round we had two votes. It was the same when I took part in elections for the presidency of FIFA and UEFA. Just say you’re still unsure. Bah.”

Shortly after the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, Bin Hammam became discredited. He withdrew as a candidate for FIFA presidency and was suspended for corruption. He would not have stopped with a football shirt, but brought the World Cup to Qatar with millions of euros in bribes. ,,Fifa should have started an investigation immediately”, says Van Praag. “I also urged President Sepp Blatter to do so. But when they started building all the stadiums, FIFA couldn’t do anything anymore. Then there would have been huge claims, then the whole football would have gone bankrupt. The World Cup should never have gone to Qatar like this.”

Of the 22 FIFA bosses assigned to the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, 16 have been convicted of or linked to corruption. ,,Michel Platini, then president of UEFA, wanted the 2022 World Cup in America”, says Van Praag. ,,Until a delegation from Qatar went to Nicolas Sarkozy. The French president seems to have asked him whether Platini wanted to lobby for Qatar after all. Paris Saint-Germain fell into Qatari hands moments later and Platini’s son got a nice job. France probably wouldn’t have gotten any worse either.”

Van Praag has not yet booked any tickets to Qatar. Not only does he seriously question the way in which the Gulf state has won the World Cup, he also hurts the situation of the migrant workers in Qatar. ,,And now again Qatar’s move to hire fans and let them say how fantastic everything is there. People with criticism should tell them. Disgusting. But there is still no compensation fund for workers who have suffered there. FIFA should have done something long ago and what do you think of Qatar? There’s so much money there, it’s outrageous.”