2022 World Cup matches may start as late as 1 am to avoid 'sweltering' Qatar heat

A senior football official has said that games in the 2022 Qatar World Cup could start and finish very late.

Harold Mayne-Nicholls said that though the event could be held in the summer, still the games would have to start as late as 1 am to avoid the heat.

The former Chilean football chief said that the teams could play the first games at 7 pm, the second games at 10 pm, and the third matches at 1am, The BBC reported.

It is expected that the Qatar World Cup would be moved to the winter of 2022 to avoid searing temperatures.

Mayne-Nicholls said that such a solution would be chaotic to most major leagues around the world.

FIFA's executive committee controversially awarded the 2022 World Cup to Qatar in 2010.

Mayne-Nicholls had expressed serious concerns about conditions in the Gulf state, when he led FIFA's technical commission, which assessed each bid for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments.

The Chilean has come up with a novel solution to one of the biggest dilemmas the sport has ever faced. He said that one could change everything, and added that it could be a couple of hours behind in Europe, and that would help TV.

Blatter has suggested that a switch to November-December 2022 is almost inevitable, although another possibility is to stage the tournament in January and February.

Mayne-Nicholls said that would also mean a clash with European football leagues, as well as the Winter Olympics and Super Bowl in the United States, and a summer tournament should be considered.

Mayne-Nicholls suggested that they could move the 2022 World Cup towards May, until the middle of June, to beat the heat.