Cannavaro weighs in on Qatar's hosting ability

Dubai: Italy's 2006 World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro has become the latest ex-pro to question Qatar's ability to stage a summer event in 2022.

June and July temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius have cast serious doubt over the event's scheduling ever since the Gulf state won with its bid to stage the World Cup.

Organisers shrugged off climate concerns with the promise of carbon neutral cooled stadiums, which will reduce indoor temperatures to 27 degrees at a total cost of £30 billion, 21 per cent of the event's total budget.

At an estimated cost of £2.5 billion to cool each of the 12 stadiums, Fifa executive member Franz Beckenbauer and Uefa President Michel Platini have both floated the idea of a cheaper winter World Cup, despite it severely disrupting the European domestic schedule. Either way, the alternative of a non-cooled summer event will be "very difficult", according to 37-year-old Dubai-based Cannavaro, who is currently a technical director at Al Ahli.

"Definitely the heat will be the most difficult aspect, not only for the players but organisation-wise," he told Arabian Business.

"They have 32 teams, which means 32 sets of fans. So the heat is definitely going to make things difficult both football-wise and for fans in the stands.

"I have played in this heat so I know what it feels like; it's going to be very difficult. It will be hot for everyone, even if you're used to it."