4000 according to Barkis
So not knowing soccer enough to really know the ins and outs, let’s really really delve into how a boycott would work. From the top of my head: Could the US say “Hey guys, we are morally against this, so we are offering up the East Coast for anyone who wants to come”. We have stadiums in Jersey, Boston, Orlando (and probably some I’m forgetting). If enough countries seem interested, could a diligent team of wedding planers/the prom committee/that-guy-who’s-always-planning-shit come up with a feasable schedule in the time the normal world cup is going on and just improv one?
In a technically feasible way, sure. Don’t expect FIFA to take that lying down, though. FIFA has been known to take a dim view on players that have played in unsanctioned leagues in the past. I could easily see them swinging that same kind of stick to any players/national teams that participated. Anyone who took part could face being barred (or at least threatened with being barred) from any FIFA sanctioned event or league for some period of time. Oh, the brewhaha that would ensue if such a thing were to occur.
So no, not remotely feasible for playing high-class soccer during the day, and only somewhat feasible if you play only at night (which is impossible schedule-wise). And even then an average low of 88 is at least 8 degrees hotter than the average HIGHS in Rioin July.
Sure, FIFA would fight it, but so what? Except for temporary spurts of brilliance, the consistently best world-class soccer teams come from Europe and South America. Should those groups get together and decide “to hell with FIFA”, what would it matter what FIFA said? Why should they care?
Well, of course, FIFA oversees all of the leagues around the world as well. It’d be quite a painful transition if some Confederations, or Leagues, were going to leave FIFA. It’s far more than just having an alternate World Cup.
The real fun comes when you roll humidity into it. During those average lows of 88, the humidity is in the 85-90% range, according to the chart lower down at your link. I plug 88 F and 85% RH into a heat index calculator and get a heat index of 110. Have fun.
About the worker deaths, I thought that was par for the course in Persian Gulf states’ construction projects? Are the Qatar facilities really out of whack as far as accidents/man-hour?
I’m totally picturing an Airplane!-style scene where some flirty-looking guy gets pushed up against the wall after the X-ray machine’s purple triangle light goes off.