FIFA president Gianni Infantino praised Turkey during his visit to Istanbul and suggested the country can host major football events.
Turkey could host major football events such as the World Cup, according to FIFA president Gianni Infantino. He spoke at a conference in Istanbul on Friday where 47 chiefs of federations from across the globe were present.
When asked by a reporter on his opinion regarding Turkey’s ability to host a World Cup, he gave a clear answer.
“Yes, definitely. Turkey has the facilities to be able to host any sporting organization. In the past, he hosted important organizations. You will also host the Champions League and the Super Cup in the near future. Important work has been done to organize the European Championship. You have made very competitive and good presentations. I think conditions are appropriate. There’s desire, passion. Turkey is a big country. As FIFA, we are also very happy in terms of financial fair play. Terms and infrastructure are also very convenient in Turkey. If everything goes well, why not? We want to make Turkey a leader in the football world,” he said.
The 48-year-old football administrator spoke about a number of topics in football including video assistant referee (VAR) which he pointed out has been implemented in almost 50 countries.
“Generally, VAR has been positive in Turkey. There are mistakes. It’s normal but when we look at the statistics of the World Cup, we can see that VAR is called upon only once in three games and maybe once in two games in Turkey,” he explained.
He also mentioned that Qatari and FIFA officials have been discussing the possibility of increasing the number of teams participating in the World Cup to 48 from 32.
The FIFA Executive Football Summit, which wrapped up it’s final day in Istanbul on Friday, had a number of topics on its agenda including future FIFA competitions, such as the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and VAR technology.
This year’s summit consists of nine gatherings, including Doha, Marrakech, Morocco and Istanbul, and will conclude in Rome at the end of the month.