FIFA’s official visit is now behind us and the waiting game is on to see if Qatar will be awarded the 2022 World Cup. If you talk to ten people you will get ten different views on whether Qatar will win and what factors will make or break it. Size, location, weather, legacy, money – we have heard them all. Let me add one – technology.

There is of course the impressive technology being proposed for the stadiums. It is certainly an ambitious goal of creating a stadium that will be open-air, but keep the on-field temperature a comfortable 27 degrees in a Qatar summer. But the technology that will be necessary for Qatar to win the bid goes way beyond the flashy stadiums. The most important technology is the communications systems that will allow the games to be shared with the world, enable security and public works to operate without interruption and also create a new experience for the thousands that would come to Qatar for the matches.

Tell us your views: do you think technology can help Qatar win the bid? And what technologies are most important in your opinions?

Join in the discussion at: [www.digitalqatar.net]

Absolutely! Connect people and make 2022 look like the 2022 we imagine

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Loving this blog, not written in an overly techie way and really varied. On my must read list now!

I have been considering the 2022 bid since arriving in the country earlier this year. There are a whole host of reasons why Qatar may not get the WC and it has nothing to do with technology and everything to do with culture. To successfully host a football World Cup there would have to be a great deal of tolerance shown by the authorities towards the many cultures that would descend upon Qatar. For a start, this would be a WC with restrictions on alcohol like no other before it, unless rules are relaxed. There is no getting away from the fact that alcohol and football, in the wider world, go hand in hand. There would require to be an immense mind shift in the authorities approach to the control of large groups of, mainly, young males. Also, as I have been reading on other posts within the site, there appears to be a great deal of overt racism in the country that would need to be addressed. Please don't think that I am anti Qatar as I really enjoy myself here. I am just looking beyond the technology and infrastructure to the matter of 10's or 100's of thousands of fans, unaccustomed to the ME culture descending on a small country for a very short period of time, intent on enjoying themselves and getting their monies worth, often with no regard for the local populace.