DOHA: FIFA, the apex governing body of world football, seems to be taking its President Gianni Infantino’s ‘FIFA 2.0 Vision’ strongly, creating an innovative model that will streamline the operational delivery of the 2022 World Cup. It has announced a formation of a joint venture for the same called ‘FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 LLC’ with the tournament’s Local Organising Committee.
FIFA will hold 51% of the shares, while the organizing committee and the Qatar Financial Centre have a 49% stake in the same.
“Today we take a major step in the organisation of the biggest single-sport event in the world,” FIFA secretary general Fatma Samoura said.
“Created in accordance with the FIFA President’s vision and together with our Qatari counterparts, the joint venture aims to reorganise the way we work at the operational front and avoid inefficiencies. I am convinced that this new approach to planning, delivery and legacy, always hand in hand with our colleagues based in Qatar, will help to ensure that the World Cup continues to be the most eagerly awaited event by billions of fans worldwide.”
Besides Samoura, the management board is also composed of FIFA’s two deputy secretaries general Zvonimir Boban and Alasdair Bell, FIFA chief tournaments & events officer Colin Smith, FIFA chief legal officer Emilio Garcia Silvero, the LLC chairman H.E. Hassan Al Thawadi and CEO Nasser Al-Khater, the Qatar Football Association VP Saoud Al-Mohannadi and the chairman and deputy chairman of the Technical Operational Office of Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC), Eng. Yasir Al Jamal.
Thawadi added: “The formation of this new joint venture comes at a strategically important time on Qatar’s World Cup project, as we shift our focus from delivering stadiums, training pitches and the transportation required for 2022, to fan and player experience and event operations. “I am confident that the combination of FIFA’s extensive tournament experience, and our own tactical experience and the nine years’ hard work already invested in the project, will ensure that the first FIFA World Cup in the Arab world is one of the best ever.”
Smith has been named as MD of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 LLC, who commented: “The continuous growth and complexities of a FIFA World Cup and the need for integrated involvement of all key areas across a host country has made it clear that a more efficient and optimised operational structure is required – this is particularly the case in Qatar, given the unique and compact nature of the tournament in 2022 both in terms of the opportunities and challenges that come along with it.
“The Qatar-based joint venture that will plan and deliver the next FIFA World Cup will work together with FIFA in Zurich as one team and combine, at all levels, the event experience we have there with invaluable knowledge from our colleagues in Qatar. It is a very important step, which shows how FIFA and the hosts are working together to deliver a successful and memorable event.”
