FIFA's decision to award the World Cup to Qatar in 2022 has received its fair share of criticism.
Most commentators seem to be condescendingly focusing upon the fact that the country is too small to host such a major tournament. There has also been mention that the country has no past footballing pedigree. The Middle Eastern peninsula does however have a growing reputation within professional sporting circles as being one of the locations of choice for major events over the last 20 years.
At the very epicentre of Qatar's hopes for 2022 will be the ASPIRE Academy. Since its inception in 2004, the Academy has risen to the forefront of leading sporting centres around the world. While Dubai and Abu-Dhabi have moved to attract the world’s business clientele, Qatar has taken quite a unique step and has looked to improve its name by becoming a centre for sporting excellence.
