Qatar plans ‘normal’ World Cup after vaccines
PTI, Dec 7, 2020, 8:13 AM IST
Doha: Qatar is now planning for a ‘complete normal’ World Cup in 2022 after rapid progress in producing vaccines for the coronavirus, the tournament CEO told The Associated Press on Sunday ahead of the European qualifying draw.
Early in the pandemic that forced the cancelation of the European Championship and Olympics this year, Qatar was concerned about the long-term impact of COVID-19 on the first World Cup to be staged in the Middle East.
Across the world sports have resumed in front of limited or no crowds, but the vaccines have provided hope that crowds can return in large numbers next year.
“The introduction of the vaccine and the rollout of the vaccine, it”s definitely good news for everybody,” 2022 World Cup chief executive Nasser Al-Khater said in an interview with the AP. “Everybody”s looking forward to going back to some sort of normalcy in life and especially in sports as well.
“We”re very hopeful and very looking forward that, by 2022, hopefully things will really be back to complete normal and looking forward to hosting the fans and having a normal and successful World Cup.”
European nations on Monday will discover their path to securing one of 13 spots in the tournament when the qualifying draw is staged at FIFA HQ in Zurich. The pandemic has prevented the event being staged in the host nation as would usually happen before a World Cup.
Udayavani is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest news.
Top News
Related Articles More
The Best Bowlers in IPL History
Serena’s Legacy: Plenty of wins, plenty of stands on issues
Chess Olympiad: Stalin gives away Rs 1 crore prize money to Indian teams
Chess Olympiad: India ‘B’ team wins bronze in Open section; India ‘A’ women also finish third
Former cricket umpire Rudi Koertzen killed in car crash
MUST WATCH
Latest Additions
Noted Kannada singer Shivamogga Subbanna passes away
3 soldiers killed in ‘Fidayeen’ attack on J&K’s army camp in Rajouri; 2 terrorists dead in shootout
Jahangirpuri violence: Delhi Police clicks pictures of accused to match them with CCTV footage
Accused cannot be convicted on ground of suspicion: SC
Rupee falls 37 paise to close at 79.62 against US dollar