Russia, Qatar, then China?

FIFA President Joseph Blatter announces that Qatar will host the 2022 soccer World Cup in Zurich, Switzerland, on Dec 2, 2010. Michael Probst / Associated Press

Gulf nation's winning bid dims most populous country's hopes of hosting World Cup but national soccer boss wants to give it a try, Tang Yue reports

Qatar winning the bid to host the 2022 World Cup didn't only upset its major competitors, the United States and Australia, but also disappointed China as the nation's hopes of a 2026 China World Cup nosedived.

However, according to FIFA President Sepp Blatter, Qatar's success was part of the governing body's philosophy to bring its flagship tournament to new regions - and China will be another target.

"It is my philosophy to drive forward the expansion of football," Blatter said when defending FIFA for choosing the riskiest, most expensive bids, which saw the World Cup awarded to the Middle East for the first time.

"The next regions that we need to conquer would be China and India," Blatter told Swiss weekly magazine Weltwoche. "Football has become a political matter. Heads of state court me. Football has become a monster, but it's a positive monster," he said.

Bora Milutinovic, Qatar's bid ambassador in Zurich, was obviously happy to see Qatar win, but also backed China's hopes of hosting a World Cup.

Almost a decade ago, the well-traveled Serbian coached China to its only World Cup finals appearance (2002); although the side lost all three of its group matches and failed to score a goal.

The soccer guru, who has coached five different countries at five different World Cups, showed great confidence in China being able to organize the massive event, despite sorry state of Chinese soccer affairs.

"If China wants to get something done, it is never a problem. Every time I have been to China in recent years, I have found big changes and stunning progress in every field but soccer," Milutinovic, who coached China from 2000 to 2002, said.

"I really hope China can bid to host the World Cup, it will surely make China pay more attention to soccer and turn the sport into another strength of the nation - like gymnastics and table tennis," he wrote in his Chinese blog (translated by the local portal Sina.com).

Although the event normally rotates between continents, which means a country from the region which hosts the 2022 Games (Qatar - Asia) will not be awarded the 2026 World Cup, Milutinovic plays down the unwritten rule.

"Why can't Asia hold two consecutive World Cups? The rotation regulation has been abolished. I believe China is likely to win if it bids to hold the 2026 World Cup," he said.

"I also hope China will appear in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar."

However, Chinese authorities remain pessimistic, despite Blatter and Milutinovic's words of encouragement.

Chinese soccer chief, Wei Di, who had been an adamant supporter of China bidding for the 2026 World Cup since taking over the post in January, appeared realistic after learning the result.

"Any bids for the 2026 and 2030 World Cups won't kick off before 2019, so we should focus more on our present work instead of continuing to create hype about World Cup bids," Wei told Titan Sports Weekly.

Wei said he was not put off by Qatar's upset win, and would continue to push for an eventual Chinese bid.

"My personal determination to bid for the World Cup has not changed, but we must further research when to make a bid," the paper quoted Wei as saying.

Local fans also appeared pragmatic after the announcement.

"It is really a big disappointment to learn that Qatar won the right, which has now made it almost impossible for China to hold the next (Cup) in 2026," said Wang Wen, chairman of Beijing Football Fan Club.

"But it may be a blessing in disguise. We can now focus attention on the domestic league, which is also a long-term project. That's where our players grow and develop in the sport step by step."

(China Daily 12/12/2010 page8)