"Qatar open to winter World Cup in 2022"

From Yahoo! Sports

Review by Timothy Allen in SRM 334 (section 3)

Hayden Dyer and I selected the Qatar bid for the 2022 world cup as our current event presentation for many reasons. Both of us are interested in the sport, and we found it unique that a country such as Qatar would be able to host one of the biggest events in the world of sport.

Qatar is a small country in the Middle East, bordered only by Saudi Arabia (although in close proximity of Bahrain and United Arab Emirates). The economy of Qatar is essentially run by oil, and many surrounding countries have had much prosperity because of this product. The city of Dubai in UAE has expanded to one of the largest cities in the world, and is growing exponentially. Some of the projects that are happening there are remarkable and they have high hopes that they will be one of the most visited cities in the world in the next few years.

Qatar itself has made a lot of promises up to this point. They have planned on building 8 (almost brand new) stadiums to attract attention and a World Cup bid. These stadiums offer built in air conditioning to keep players and fans cool in the 100+ degree conditions during the summer. This will be the most expensive World Cup in history by a long shot. The selection process for Qatar to get this world cup was a long and arduous one; they had to produce a bid evaluation report which covers hotel accommodations to transportation for players and fans. The struggle to get this attention was hard as well, 2002 was the first time a world cup wasn’t held in the Americas or Europe, and 2010 was the first time the world cup was held in Africa. FIFA President Sepp Blatter said it was his goal to bring the World Cup to countries that would never have a chance to see it years ago, but that leaves a lot of pressure for these countries to prepare for it.

Although Qatar is a safe country itself, it’s hard to ignore the safety concerns in hosting such a large event in the Middle East, and being a Muslim country there is still much hostility towards other nationalities and religions. For example, Qatar is a dry country, meaning alcohol is forbidden and against the law to possess, but for the World Cup, alcohol will be permitted and there will be designated alcohol zones where it can be purchased and consumed. Another difficulty in Qatar’s bid was Israel, although they aren’t a powerhouse in the sport, there is a strong possibility they will be included in the tournament, and although Qatar doesn’t recognize Israel as a country, they will still be able to compete.

Overall, Qatar is drawn out to be a success on paper. They have a lot of time to prepare for the tournament and unlike South Africa they plan on being done with stadium renovations years before the tournament will take place. There is a lot that can go wrong in the next 10 years, but with careful preparation I can see this World Cup being a success for the Middle East’s exposure and for other hopeful countries to come.

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Review by Hayden Dyer in SRM 334 (section 3)

For our current event presentation, we decided on the topic of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and the controversies, bid campaign, and media involvement that come along with it. Qatar was selected to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, in a bid campaign that also included countries such as, USA, Japan, and Australian, to name a few. One of the major controversies surrounding FIFA’s choice to pick Qatar was how hot it gets during the summers. Temperatures can reach up to 122 degrees Fahrenheit, making medical personnel worried about the player’s safety of playing in these temperatures. One suggestion was to schedule the event during Qatar’s winter months, where the temperature would be much lower. Many people wondered knowing that it would be so hot why would FIFA choose Qatar to host such a big event. It all starts with the bid campaign where the country proposes to FIFA on why they should host the World Cup. Using media such as websites and videos, Qatar began to spread the word to gain supporters for their proposal. They aired videos showing how not only their country, but also the world would come together and enjoy such an event. They also put out videos of architectural designs of what the stadiums would look like, if they were chosen, and to silence critics about it being too hot, they said that each stadium would have an air conditioning unit that would make the stadium about 30 degrees cooler than it was outside. Seeing these proposals FIFA chose Qatar to be in the final voting with USA, who Qatar beat to host this event. Using media such as websites, and airing commercials to get their name out there Qatar grabbed the attention of many people, and impressed the FIFA committee with their state of the art facility plans, enough so to host an event as big as the FIFA World Cup.

"How video game is changing face of soccer"

From ESPN FC

Review by Heather Holston in KIN 332 (section 1)

I found an article from ESPN soccer net that was talking about the popular game FIFA. EA Sports states that their game is helping make soccer more popular in the United States. They say consumers play the game and then want to follow the teams they play. Also with the help of World Cups and technology, soccer is becoming a sport of the future for America. Americans can keep up now with their favorite international teams because of the internet. Most of these consumers are ages eighteen to twenty four. FIFA is the second most video game behind Madden football to do well. FIFA 12 sold the most video games in retail in a week. The latest version of FIFA 13 just came out September 25th. EA Sports first tried to get FIFA into Americans homes by using international superstars such as Wayne Rooney from Manchester United to promote the product. However, Americans haven’t progressed that much in soccer. They had no clue who Rooney was. EA Sports then came up with a different campaign. They started using American celebrities to promote the game. Some of the first celebrities to promote were Seth Myers, Steve Nash, and Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson. This caught more American consumer’s eyes and worked better for the game. FIFA 13 had celebrities like Snoop Dogg, Andrew Luck and Barcelona Soccer player Lionel Messi. I believe that EA Sports fixed the situation of how to message to the market very well. They looked for people who Americans knew to get more consumers. If they had stuck with Rooney, the campaign could have continued to fail. I believe if they keep using American celebrities, they will keep being successful in the market. I believe FIFA could out sell Madden in the future if they keep up the success. Along with the continuation of the growth of soccer in America. 

"EA Sports to North America: ‘Even if you don’t necessarily love soccer, ‘you’ll still love new ‘FIFA 12’ game"

From the SportsBusiness Journal


Review by Phillip Offman in KIN 332 (Section 1)

FIFA is looking to expand their marketing strategy, and aim it towards North America. EA Sports has seen much success with the sales of FIFA overseas and are looking to do the same in North America with FIFA 12. With sales up still the game in the US is at the bottom of the totem pole. Its low sales in the US market is related to the low popularity soccer has here in the US. Madden, NHL, and NBA 2k sports games dominate the market due to the fact that these are the sports that’s what most of the people who live in the US like to play. EA sports is marketing the game to attract new users, not only soccer fans but fans of all sports. FIFA has gained exposure through a variety of TV media sources both in entertainment and sports. With its attempt to bring in fans from our country, EA has coined the slogan “United States of FIFA.”

EA Sports is doing well with their launch of FIFA 12 in North America. With EA Sports trying to get their game off they have aired TV commercials on different networks which will give them all the exposure they are looking for. Getting star athletes such as Landon Donovan, Hope Solo, Steve Nash and Tim Lincecum for their TV commercials is smart because it branches out to more fans in different sports which are what EA is looking to do. These stars are also making appearances at retail stores in LA and NY; this will be good for advertising the game and will give fans a chance to interact with their favorite stars creating a buzz for the game. Airing the commercials on other entertainment networks not just sports gives them a better chance of advertising the game to a more diverse group of people. From marketing view the more sources of advertising the better chances for sales. With the popularity of soccer on the rise and their use of marketing FIFA as they did EA Sports should have much success in North America and should only continue over the years.