The Arabian Stories
Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Oman’s Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs said the country is not ready to co-host the 2022 World Cup at short notice.
FIFA had earlier hinted of its plan to extend the Qatar World Cup from 32 to 48 games. However, speaking to CNN about Oman’s readiness to co-host the World Cup, Alawi had this to say: “We have been asked about it many times and our answer was we are not ready.”
Alawi also said Oman will be “happy to host” the biggest football showpiece. “Qatar is hosting this tournament and it should stay with them.” he added.
Big stadiums
Earlier on Saturday, Oman Football Association chief Salim Al Wahaibi said the Sultanate will face a race against time to build a stadium large enough to satisfy FIFA requirements if football’s governing body decides to expand the Qatar 2022 World Cup finals and asks the Sultanate to co-host the enlarged tournament.
“But with Muscat’s Sultan Qaboos Stadium falling short of minimum capacity requirements for the World Cup, the Omanis would need to overhaul their biggest stadium to be considered a viable host,”’the Reuters reported.
“Fifa President visited us and he gave a proposal to the government and they are still thinking about it,” said Al Wahaibi on the sidelines of the Asian Football Confederation’s congress on Saturday.
“They haven’t come to a decision yet, but it’s not a federation decision. We have some issues. We don’t have a stadium for 40,000, so if we take it we will be working against time. That is the first enemy for us. There are so many issues and it won’t be as easy as it looks.
“Our stadium, the maximum capacity we have is 29,000, so in two years can we get that? That’s the question for the government, plus the other logistics. I’m optimistic but let’s see.”
Qatar was awarded the rights to host a 32-team World Cup in December 2010, but after becoming FIFA president in 2016 Infantino has been open to the idea of expanding the tournament to accommodate 16 additional teams.
The 2026 edition is already slated to feature 48 nations and Infantino is keen to bring forward the enlarged format by four years.