The United States of America will not host the 2022 F.I.F.A. World Cup.
A voting committee in Zurich, Austria, just made the announcement. The U.S. was hoping to host its second World Cup in 2022, 18 years after the first tournament on U.S. soil in 1994.
While many expected the U.S. to win the bid, the money and state-of-the-art stadiums promised by the Qatari delegation won out in the end. The country is known for high temperatures and a lack of soccer culture–they’ve never qualified for a World Cup and are currently ranked 113th in the world. But a lot can change in 12 years, and the prospect of a World Cup in the Middle East is interesting, to say the least. As disappointed as I am, these proposed stadiums are pretty cool:
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It’s great that the FIFA delegation has chosen to take the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to two countries that have great respect for human rights, social justice, and transparency. Wait…
In all seriousness, though, I see why the delegation would choose to take the World Cup to the Middle East for the first time, given the success of the first World Cup on African soil this past summer. Still, the corruption and colluding that plagued the selection process is highly frustrating. The United States was a sure bid, no reason other than politics why the US did not get selected.