U.S. World Cup Bid 2022: Instant Analysis

Click picture to wrap up how good Qatar is

By: Matt Carlson

I have just finished watching the FIFA World Cup Selection Show and let me just start out by saying that the Qatar selection did not surprise me at all. Those of you who have been following my continuing coverage of the 2022 World Cup bidding and selection process know, that from the very beginning, I have thought the Qatar bid was the strongest of all the bidding countries and that it was a lock to be awarded the bid for 2022. (It’s Time To Get Political).
Okay, so I got that one a teensy bit wrong, but, who can blame me? I just could not see Qatar getting past the lack of alcohol and the unbearable heat, especially because they did not adequately address those issues in their presentation yesterday. We all know by now that in Qatar it is illegal to drink alcohol in public or to be drunk in public. Qatar made an attempt to address the issue in their presentation yesterday by showing some alcohol consumption for a moment in one of their videos, but I thought going subtle on an important issue like this when all the chips were down was a mistake. I thought Qatar should have gone more aggressive. Like, Kenny Powers aggressive. Like, starting off their presentation with committee members funneling a couple of beers and then having a game of whiskey pong going in the background throughout the rest of the presentation.


I also thought that Qatar failed to adequately address the desert heat issue. In its presentation yesterday, Qatar told FIFA that they had technology which would allow them to air condition an open-air stadium. Nice try, but I don’t think anyone actually believes this is possible. First, any parent will tell you that kids have been trying to cool down the “whole neighborhood” for years by just standing in front of the refrigerator with the doors “wide open” and it does not work. Second, as my Dad often told me when I was a kid standing in front of the refrigerator with the doors “wide open”, even if it was possible to cool the “whole neighborhood”, he “was not made of money” so I needed to close the doors right now! Well, it turns out that Qatar is, in fact, made of money, so that part is not going to be an issue. And, being made of money looks like the exact point where I made my miscalculation on my Qatar prediction. Indeed, while the Fox Soccer Channel gang speculated as to what delayed the selection announcement, I am guessing it was because each FIFA voting member was busy deciding where to locate the new soccer stadium Qatar was “donating” to them after 2022.
While FIFA can continue to assert it is free of corruption, corruption is the only way to make sense of the Qatar selection. The irrationality of the FIFA voting is evident in the round-by-round voting statistics published by FIFA. For example, South Korea -- a week removed from being shelled by North Korea and starting the day at 40-1 odds -- got more votes than both Australia and Japan. Of course, in Australia’s case, this could be a reflection on its presentation yesterday, which was, by far, the worst. Australia showed a video about a cartoon kangaroo that steals the World Cup trophy from FIFA headquarters and takes it back to Australia where he is greeted by cheering Australians, but a mystery motorcyclist in black tracks him down to get the trophy back. The mystery motorcyclist? Crocodile Dundee star, Paul Hogan. Aside from being cheesy, the video failed for two major reasons: 1) it gives the impression that Australians really love theft; and 2) Paul Hogan. Paul Hogan? I know Steve Irwin passed away, but were The Wiggles busy? Australia also trotted out former supermodel, Elle Macpherson, to say a few words. Elle Macpherson and Paul Hogan. Didn’t anyone tell Australia that Mexico already won the bid for 1986?

So, after all the hard work by the U.S. Committee over these last few years, the only thing they got from FIFA is a “Certificate of Appreciation” they received yesterday that looked like Sepp Blatter had picked it up at Staples on the way in to the presentation. Still, the U.S. Committee is to be commended. They had the best proposal and bid and, undoubtedly, would have put on the best World Cup. As a soccer fan in the U.S., I am bitterly disappointed, but, like many other soccer fans in the U.S., I am used to dealing with adversity and struggle to get my soccer. I am used to getting up at the crack of dawn to watch a match. I am used to watching a choppy feed with Taiwanese commentary just to get my soccer fix. I am used to scouring the internet for soccer news because my local media does not cover it. I am used to having people at my office glaze over when I mention the sport. I am sure I am not the only one. So, despite this setback, I know U.S. soccer fans will show up in droves in Qatar, just as they did in South Africa. The support and passion of the soccer fans in the U.S. during the next twelve years will serve as a continuing reminder of the mistake FIFA made today. This is why the U.S. Bid Committee must now dust itself off, hold its head high, and try, try again. Because the U.S. fans are still here. Because the fans U.S. still dream of a World Cup in the U.S. Because truly “The Game Is In US.”