In six years Qatar will host one of the biggest sporting events in the world: the FIFA World Cup. The honour of hosting the foremost sporting spectacle in the world coincides with a major shift in footballing dynamics of the Asian content. In the east, China is entering the world football market while South Asian giant India is hosting a Super League attracting a host of the games' legends. It is understandably quite exciting times for football crazed fans in Asia and the Asian Football Confederation’s President Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa says the continent should be optimistic.
The Asian football chief on Sunday visited the Maldives, one of the smallest nations in Asia, and talked to a local journalist about the prospects awaiting Asian football. When asked about Asia’s growth in world football, he said that Qatar’s efforts to make the World Cup a success is proof that Asia is on the rise.
“I think there is no doubt that Qatar 2022 will bring so much success. I don’t want to sound biased as World Cup is in Asia. But lot of things is different than the previous World Cups. (Qatar) being smaller as it is as a country, (reach between) one stadium to another is much easier,” said the Bahraini, who is also a FIFA Council member.
He believes that the infrastructure and investment that Qatar has to put in the World Cup is something the whole of Asia should be proud of. He also said that Qatar currently hosting many international sporting events is an extremely positive sign.
“I think Doha has become the Asian capital of sports and Asian capital of football. We cannot deny that,” said Sheikh Salman.
The former Bahrain Football Association’s president added that with Qatar putting so much in to the game, it is their right to host the World Cup and this region’s right to host an international event like the World Cup.
“I'm sure it will be a success. We, as a part of the team, we will do our utmost to make it successful,” Sheikh Salman reiterated.
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