Sepp Blatter and FIFA have the fate of Qatar’s hotel industry in its hands following the president’s refusal to rule out a re-run of the vote for the 2022 World Cup after allegations of bribery were made.
Speaking to HotelierMiddleEast.com, Viability managing partner Guy Wilkinson said that were the World Cup 2022 competition to be re-held, it would “of course put a major dampener on the current buoyancy and enthusiasm that characterise the Qatar economy as a whole, including the hotel sector”.
During Hotelier Middle East’s Qatar GM Debate, held in April, Wilkinson highlighted a number of large construction projects in the country’s hospitality sector that essentially received a new lease of life thanks to the announcement of the successful World Cup bid, including 42 new hotels and serviced residences with more than 8,000 letting units that the Qatar Tourism Authority claim will open by the end of this year alone.
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“Were the event not to be held, there would be a question mark over the market supportability of these properties,” Wilkinson asserted.
“This is because while corporate demand is of course growing year on year, it is not growing fast enough to support such a massive jump in supply, and football tourism was widely hoped to fill the gap. Also, the QTA’s long-term strategy to focus only on specialised areas of tourism like MICE, museums and sports in general means that without the World Cup, tourism could be expected to remain as it is now, an almost negligible contributor of hotel room-nights.”
Wilkinson concluded that in deciding whether to keep the World Cup in Qatar or award it to another country, "Sepp Blatter and FIFA really hold the fate of the Qatar hotel sector in their hands”.
Operators were reluctant to comment on the possibility of a revote at this stage.
Blatter, who is seeking re-election next month for a fourth term, said the whistleblower at the centre of corruption claims made by The Sunday Times had agreed to go to FIFA to give evidence in person and a full investigation would take place.
The paper claimed the whistleblower alleged FIFA members Issa Hayatou and Jacques Anouma were paid $1.5m each to vote for Qatar, which controversially won the 2022 bid in December.
The Qatar Football Association has branded the allegations as “entirely false”.
In an interview with the Press Association, Blatter said the notion the 2022 vote would be reheld was “alarming” but said the idea was “circulating already around the world”.
He said: “But don't ask me now yes or no, let us go step by step. It's like we are in an ordinary court and in an ordinary court we cannot ask: 'if, if, if'."
“We are anxiously awaiting for these evidences or non-evidences in order that we can take the adequate steps.”
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