FIFA to set up taskforce to look into 2022 Qatar World Cup scheduling issue

World football governing body FIFA has reportedly agreed to set up a taskforce for discussing alternative dates for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, although a final decision will not take place before the 2014 World Cup.

FIFA has been forced to look into the situation over fears that Qatar's searing summer temperatures could pose a heath risk to players and fans, and the taskforce will consult with medical experts, broadcasters, sponsors and influential European leagues.

According to the BBC, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said that Asian Football Confederation president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim al-Khalifa would head the taskforce, adding that they need to carry out very deep consultations and investigations and show some diplomacy and wisdom over the scheduling issue.

The report mentioned that FIFA is considering inviting English Premier League chief Richard Scudamore, who has been one of the opponents of plans to stage a World Cup in the northern hemisphere winter, to be a part of the taskforce.

Qatar had planned to combat the fierce heat by building air-conditioned stadiums, although Blatter announced that the World Cup should be switched to a cooler time of the year, away from Qatar's summer months of June and July.