2022 will be game-changer, says Qatar World Cup chief

NEW YORK: The 2022 Qatar World Cup will be “a game-changer,” tournament chief Hassan Al-Thawadi declared Thursday, facing down the many skeptics voicing serious reservations about the gas-rich Gulf state hosting the showpiece.
Al-Thawadi, who helped lead Qatar’s bid committee and now oversees a massive building program in a country with little footballing infrastructure or history, sent a message of steely determination.
“We are going to be ready,” he said in an on-stage interview over 40 minutes, part of the “Leaders Sport Business Summit.”
“Hopefully with every day that people see progress on the ground, they’ll come round to the idea that the 2022 event is a game-changer.” Al-Thawadi reiterated that Qatar’s winning bid — which was met with incredulity when it was announced in December 2010 — had not broken any rules, amid constant claims of corruption at the heart of FIFA, football’s world governing body.
“We have always maintained that we have full confidence in the integrity of our bid,” Al-Thawadi said.