The Bundesliga has reacted to FIFA President Sepp Blatter's plan to move the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar to the winter, according to BILD.
- Bayern Munich Exec Board Chair Karl-Heinz Rummenigge: "No question, it would be welcomed if FIFA agrees to host the 2022 World Cup in the Winter months. A tournament in the summer is not doable in Qatar."
- Schalke GM Horst Heldt: "We will have to play the season in a single calendar year, which will give the Bundesliga a good shakeup..."
- Hamburg SV Sport Dir Oliver Kreuzer: "I say, 'Take a deep breat and get to it!' The fact that there are high temperatures in Qatar is not a secret. During the World Cups in Mexico or the U.S., temperatures also reached 45C degrees (113F) at game time."
- Leverkusen Sport Dir Rudi Völler: "I see it as a huge chance to try something new. Changing the surrounding tournaments has been an issue close to heart for me. We have been throwing away the best football months, May and June in Germany, for years."
- Nuremberg coach Michael Wiesinger: "That's not for me. A World Cup is the highlight of the summer and includes grilling, friends or public viewing. I can't get used to the thought of a winter World Cup and especially the change in league play" (BILD, 7/18).
