• World Cup

Ferdinand blasts Qatar World Cup 'farce'

ESPN staff
September 19, 2013
Rio Ferdinand has questioned why the 2022 World Cup was awarded to Qatar in the first place © Getty Images
Enlarge

Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has hit out at FIFA's backing for a winter World Cup in Qatar, calling the situation a "farce".

It is expected that FIFA's executive committee will confirm the decision to move the 2022 World Cup from the summer to the winter in a meeting taking place in Zurich on October 3.

UEFA have also given their backing to the proposed move, with the severe heat in Qatar during the summer a potential risk to players' health. The Qatar bid team had originally proposed to install air conditioning at all stadiums that would be used for the tournament.

With the move to winter looking increasingly likely, Ferdinand took to Twitter to vent his anger.

England failed in their bid to host the 2018 World Cup, receiving just 2 of 22 votes from the FIFA executive committee.

Ferdinand retired from international duty with England in May.

Download ESPN's new UK sport app, a fresh and powerful new way to follow your favourite UK sports news, scores and video.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd
ESPN staff Close

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices