ZURICH, Nov 8, (Agencies): After all the talk of using state-of-the-art air conditioning to cool stadiums at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the architect in charge of one of the venues claimed Tuesday that a more old-fashioned solution would be cheaper and better. Leading firm Populous, which is designing the Sports City stadium in Doha, is trying to persuade Qatari organizers to scrap plans to have air conditioning at the venue. Populous director John Barrow said the system is too expensive and “notoriously unsustainable” for the environment when used on a large scale. “I think you can be more clever. It is about air movement, moisture in the air and it is about temperature at the right time of day,” Barrow told delegates at the International Football Arena conference. “If we get it right ... that is the way ahead.”

Air-conditioned stadiums to beat 50-degree (122 Fahrenheit) desert heat in June were a defining theme of Qatar’s winning bid last year. Qatar hired Populous to help its campaign, drawing on the firm’s experience in building signature projects such as the new Yankee Stadium, London’s 2012 Olympic Stadium and Arsenal’s Emirates arena. The firm built a small prototype of an air-conditioned stadium in Doha to help persuade a FIFA inspection team that the tiny nation’s ambitious World Cup project could succeed.

However, Barrow now believes the planned Sports City arena can be kept cool by shading seats and using traditional Arabic methods for ventilation.
“We are doing away with all the air conditioning kit that is going to cost a fortune to run,” Barrow said.
Instead, he is proposing wind towers that suck up hot air to create fan-like air movement inside the 47,000-capacity stadium.
“It is part of the building tradition in the Gulf to create wind towers which naturally ventilate. If you have got an air movement which keeps you cool like a fan that makes all the difference.”
Qatar promised FIFA that its 12 World Cup stadiums could be regulated at around 26 degrees (79 Fahrenheit).

Now, Barrow says spectators could be kept comfortable at 30 degrees (86 Fahrenheit) with low humidity during evening matches.
“It doesn’t need to be 26 degrees. Fan expectation needs to be a little more relaxed,” he said on the conference sidelines.
Seating areas also need to be kept in shade during searing daytime temperatures, instead of allowing stadiums to “suck in” heat that is retained after dark.
“Suddenly you are sitting on a radiator. It is totally counter productive,” Barrow said. “The objective for me is to keep the (stadium) bowl sun-screened during the day, with natural ventilation and also encouraging a vortex by using all kinds of clever tricks.”
Qatar is likely to be challenged on heat issues until the scheduled kickoff in June 2022. The organizing committee must approach FIFA if it wants to switch to midwinter dates but officials have said there is no plan to change.

Ghana forward Asamoah Gyan, who has played for United Arab Emirates club Al Ain since September, predicted that the “climate for the World Cup is going to be really, really difficult.
“They are putting air conditioning in the stadiums and I think maybe it can help the football there because without that I don’t think people can survive because it’s really, really hot,” Gyan told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.
However, Barrow compared the Doha climate with Houston, Texas, where Populous has built air-conditioned stadiums for baseball and American football.
“But it is an immensely expensive thing to do,” he cautioned.
Barrow said Populous is “actively engaged” in conversations with the Qatari government about its World Cup strategy.
“They are strongly of the opinion that they need to build now so that they can demonstrate their commitment, but in fact they have got loads of time,” he said, suggesting that waiting could allow new technology to develop. “There is still a long way until 2022.”

Sepp Blatter added another layer to his FIFA reform program Monday, pledging to revive a panel of experts drawn from across world football. The FIFA president said he would bring back the Strategic Committee, which includes representatives from clubs, leagues, players and referees.
“I will also now, let’s say, put to life the strategic committee ... where FIFA itself will show to the world that we are going to work in our own family,” Blatter told delegates at a conference in FIFA’s home city.
Blatter is chairman of the 28-member panel, which includes Marcello Lippi, coach of Italy’s 2006 World Cup-winning team, FC Barcelona president Sandro Rosell, former France international Christian Karembeu and Sunil Gulati, president of the US Soccer Federation.
FIFA describes its role as dealing with “global strategies for football and its political, economic and social status.” It last met in April 2009.
Blatter said the group will work separately from four FIFA task forces which are suggesting changes to a good governance committee. That so-called “solutions committee” of up to 18 members from football, politics and public service will steer reforms of FIFA’s ethics, investigative powers and legal structures over the next two years.

Blatter stressed his commitment to change while broadly outlining his anti-corruption program to the International Football Arena gathering.
“We want to be transparent and go through this procedure so that at the end of day, we can say ‘FIFA is here, better than it has been,’” he said. “It is not easy but I have taken this task very seriously.”
Blatter did not mention his pledge to reopen the ISL case, which FIFA’s critics see as a test of his determination to confront world football’s scandal-hit recent history. FIFA is set to publish court documents on Dec. 17 which identify senior football officials who took kickbacks from World Cup marketing deals.

However, Blatter did hint that his reform mission could result in casualties.
“I need the support of the whole (football) community and also of the family members — if they are still in the family,” the FIFA leader said.
WC delays
Brazil’s largest newspaper says the country will spend an additional $410 million to expedite construction work for the 2014 World Cup.
The Folha de S. Paulo daily says costs will increase because more workers will have to be hired to finalize stadiums and infrastructure work in time for the monthlong tournament.
Folha says that work will be nonstop at nine stadiums and seven airports, meaning extra shifts will have to be added.
The stadium in Sao Paulo, which will host the World Cup’s opening match, is among those which will require more workers. The airport in South America’s biggest city also will cost more.

Corruption ban
Former FIFA executive committee member Ahongalu Fusimalohi gave evidence at sport’s highest court to challenge his two-year ban for corruption during World Cup bidding contests.
Fusimalohi appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to annul the sanction imposed by FIFA that expires in October 2012. The Tongan official was caught in a British newspaper’s sting during bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. Fusimalohi and other former FIFA officials reportedly advised The Sunday Times’s undercover reporters how to bribe their former colleagues.
Fusimalohi’s ban cost him his job as Tonga Football Association general secretary, and his seat on the Oceania confederation’s executive committee.
He now works as an adviser to Tongan Prime Minister Lord Tu’ivakano.
Fusimalohi was a member of FIFA’s ruling body from 2002-06 and took part in the election of South Africa as the 2010 World Cup host.

He is the last of three officials to appear at CAS among six banned by FIFA last year based on the newspaper’s evidence.
Amos Adamu of Nigeria, who FIFA ruled had asked for bribes, challenged his three-year ban from all football duties last month. Adamu was barred from voting when FIFA’s high command chose World Cup hosts Russia and Qatar last December.
Amadou Diakite of Mali faced the same FIFA charges as Fusimalohi. He appealed his two-year ban last month.
Diakite had been a member of FIFA’s refereeing committee.
The CAS panels are scheduled to give their three verdicts within several weeks.

Myanmar
Myanmar’s ban from the 2018 World Cup qualifiers has been lifted on appeal but they must play all their qualifying home games on neutral territory, FIFA said. Myanmar, who have never qualified for the World Cup finals, were initially banned by FIFA after crowd trouble halted their 2014 Asian qualifying match against Oman in July.
“The Myanmar Football Federation will be ... reintegrated into the preliminary competition,” said FIFA in a statement.
“(Myanmar) will now be required to play all their home matches in the preliminary competition for the 2018 World Cup on neutral ground in another country.”

Myanmar will still have to pay a fine of 25,000 Swiss francs ($28,000).
Already 2-0 down from the first leg in the preliminary round tie, Myanmar were also trailing 2-0 in the second leg in their capital Yangon when the violence broke out just before the end of the first half.
FIFA immediately awarded Oman a 2-0 victory which saw them through to the next stage and left Myanmar eliminated from the 2014 competition.
Japanese referee Ryuji Sato was forced to halt the game two minutes into stoppage time at the end of the first half when fans hurled rocks and glass bottles at him, visiting coach Paul Le Guen and the Oman players.
Despite a heavy police presence, Myanmar fans turned unruly when Sato awarded a penalty to Oman with the home side already trailing 1-0.