The venues scheduled for use at the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar may not require cooling systems, according to an executive from the Gulf state’s organizing committee, following FIFA’s decision to move the tournament from summer to winter.
“The temperatures are lower in the winter, so the demand for cooling will be lower,” said Dario Cadavid, technical assurance and integration manager at Qatar’s 2022 Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy. “It’s very possible that during that time of year cooling won’t be required.”
In order to provide safety for the players, Cadavid says that temperature between 78.8°F and 84.2°F need to be ensured. As such, research on cooling technologies is continuing because Qatar wants the 2022 stadia to be available for local league games all year – an aspect of the bid described as the legacy element.
The number of venues planned for the finals has not been announced, but the cooling system will be installed when each ground is constructed, Cadavid said. “It’s more difficult to put in the systems after the stadiums are finished… It becomes more expensive and complex because the cooling system is integrated, so that needs to happen now.”
As part of Qatar’s original bid, the organizing committee said it would provide all the energy used for cooling from sustainable resources, including building a 100MW solar power plant and installing solar panels in every stadium.
