By Andrew Warshaw
May 22 – Gianni Infantino’s hopes of expanding the Qatar World Cup to 48 teams have been dealt a crushing blow with FIFA announcing it has ditched the idea – exactly two weeks before it was due to be debated by the organisation’s entire global membership.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 21 – Qatar’s 2022 World Cup organising chief has confirmed that a decision will definitely be made one way or the other at the upcoming FIFA Congress over possible expansion to 48 teams – but won’t say which way it will go.
May 17 – Qatar officially opened its latest World Cup 2022 stadium Thursday as it staged a prestigious domestic cup final in the $575 million, 40,000-capacity Al-Wakrah venue.
May 15 – Another milestone in the development of 2022 World Cup infrastructure will be achieved on Thursday when the newly-built 40,000-capacity Al Wakrah Stadium hosts its first competitive game, the domestic Emir Cup final.
April 29 – FIFA has written to human rights groups to hold talks about issues related to a potential expansion of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 teams as Gianni Infantino and the governing body continue their push to find one more regional co-host for the tournament.
April 17 – The draw for the first phase of Asia’s qualifying round for the 2022 World Cup finals was made on Wednesday despite the fact that the continent doesn’t know for sure how many teams will be represented in Qatar.
April 15 – FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s determination to win his battle to expand the 2022 World Cup beyond Qatar’s borders has taken him to Kuwait in a last-ditch effort to pull in another 16 finalists in three years’ time.
April 15 – African football legend Samuel Eto’o has joined the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) as a Global Ambassador.
April 12 – The chances of FIFA increasing the number of teams at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar from 32 to 48 is around 50-50, Gianni Infantino has admitted.
April 10 – A major spanner has been thrown into the plans of Gianni Infantino to share the 2022 World Cup with Qatar’s neighbours.
April 9 – Qatar has indicated it will not be pressured into having the 2022 World Cup expanded to 48 teams against its will.
April 8 – Gianni Infantino has upped the ante once again in his bid to gain global support for his controversial plan to change the landscape of club world football as well as expand the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 teams.
March 20 – FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s plan to expand the 2022 World Cup to 48 teams and sharing hosting rights with Qatar’s neighbours risks worsening tensions in the region, according to a new survey.
March 11 – Qatar’s 2022 World Cup CEO Nasser Al-Khater has added his voice to speculation that the tournament could be shared with Kuwait and Oman by insisting that no decision has been made on the issue.
By Andrew Warshaw
March 7 -With little more than a week to go until the all-important Miami summit of FIFA’s decision-making Council, Gianni infantino is reportedly working to try and rescue the idea of expanding the 2022 Qatar World Cup to 48 teams.
