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“It was a wrong decision for Qatar to host the World Cup,” admits Blatter

Sepp Blatter was FIFA president when the 2010 World Cup was awarded to Russia and Qatar. Blatter told the Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger: “The choice of Qatar was a mistake. We actually agreed in the executive committee that the 2018 World Cup should go to Russia and 2022 to the United States.”
The build-up to this year’s World Cup has been affected by concerns about the suffering of low-paid migrant workers building Qatar’s infrastructure and discriminatory laws that criminalize same-sex relationships.
“At that time we in the executive committee actually agreed that the 2018 World Cup should go to Russia and 2022 to the United States. It would be a sign of peace if the two long-time political adversaries held the World Cup back-to-back.
“Now the World Cup is around the corner and I am happy that no footballers are boycotting the World Cup.
“It’s clear to me: Qatar is a mistake. The choice is bad. I’m wondering: why does the new FIFA president [Gianni Infantino] live in Qatar? He can’t be the head of the local World Cup organization. That’s not his job. There are two organizing committees for this – a local one and One from FIFA.”
“කටාර් රාජ්යට ලෝක කුසලාන සත්කාරකත්වය වැරදි තීරණයක්” බව බ්ලැටර් පිළිගනී
සෙප් බ්ලැටර් 2010 ලෝක කුසලානය රුසියාවට සහ කටාරයට පිරිනමන විට FIFA හි සභාපති විය. බ්ලැටර් ස්විට්සර්ලන්ත පුවත්පතක් වන Tages-Anzeiger වෙත පැවසීය: “කටාරය තේරීම වැරදීමකි. අපි විධායක කමිටුවේදී ඇත්ත වශයෙන්ම එකඟ වූයේ 2018 ලෝක කුසලානය රුසියාවට සහ 2022 එක්සත් ජනපදයට හිමිවිය යුතු බවට”
කටාර් රාජ්යයේ යටිතල පහසුකම් ගොඩනැගීම සඳහා අඩු වැටුප් ලබන සංක්රමණික සේවකයින් දුක් විඳීම සහ සමලිංගික සබඳතා අපරාධයක් බවට පත් කරන වෙනස් කොට සැලකීමේ නීති ගැන කනස්සල්ලෙන් මේ වසරේ ලෝක කුසලානය ගොඩනැගීමට බලපා ඇත.
“ඒ වෙලාවේ අපි විධායක කමිටුවේදී ඇත්ත වශයෙන්ම එකඟ වුණා 2018 ලෝක කුසලානය රුසියාවටත් 2022 ඇමරිකා එක්සත් ජනපදයටත් හිමිවිය යුතුයි කියලා. දිගුකාලීන දේශපාලන විරුද්ධවාදීන් දෙදෙනා එකකට පසු ලෝක කුසලානය පැවැත්වූවා නම් එය සාමයේ ඉඟියක් වනු ඇත.
“දැන් ලෝක කුසලානය අත ළඟයි, මම සතුටු වෙනව, කිසිම පාපන්දු ක්රීඩකයෙක් ලෝක කුසලානය වර්ජනය නොකිරීම ගැන.
“මට පැහැදිලියි: කටාරය වැරදීමක්. තේරීම නරකයි. මම කල්පනා කරන්නේ: නව FIFA සභාපති [Gianni Infantino] කටාර්හි ජීවත් වන්නේ ඇයි? ඔහුට දේශීය ලෝක කුසලාන සංවිධානයේ ප්රධානියා විය නොහැක. එය ඔහුගේ කාර්යය නොවේ. මේ සඳහා සංවිධායක කමිටු දෙකක් ඇත – දේශීය එකක් සහ FIFA වෙතින් එකක්.”
“கத்தார் உலகக் கோப்பையை நடத்துவது தவறான முடிவு” என்று பிளாட்டர் ஒப்புக்கொண்டார்
2010 உலகக் கோப்பை ரஷ்யா மற்றும் கத்தாருக்கு வழங்கப்பட்டபோது ஃபிஃபா தலைவராக செப் பிளாட்டர் இருந்தார். பிளாட்டர் சுவிஸ் செய்தித்தாள் Tages-Anzeiger இடம் கூறினார்: “கத்தாரைத் தேர்ந்தெடுத்தது ஒரு தவறு. நாங்கள் உண்மையில் 2018 உலகக் கோப்பை ரஷ்யாவிற்கும் 2022 அமெரிக்காவிற்கும் செல்ல வேண்டும் என்று நிர்வாகக் குழுவில் ஒப்புக்கொண்டோம்.”
கத்தாரின் உள்கட்டமைப்பைக் கட்டமைக்கும் குறைந்த ஊதியம் பெறும் புலம்பெயர்ந்த தொழிலாளர்களின் துன்பம் மற்றும் ஒரே பாலின உறவுகளை குற்றமாக்கும் பாரபட்சமான சட்டங்களால் இந்த ஆண்டு உலகக் கோப்பைக்கான உருவாக்கம் பாதிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது.
“அந்த நேரத்தில் நாங்கள் நிர்வாகக் குழுவில் 2018 உலகக் கோப்பை ரஷ்யாவிற்கும் 2022 அமெரிக்காவிற்கும் செல்ல வேண்டும் என்று ஒப்புக்கொண்டோம். நீண்ட கால அரசியல் எதிரிகள் இருவரும் உலகக் கோப்பையை மீண்டும் நடத்தினால் அது அமைதிக்கான அறிகுறியாக இருக்கும்.
“இப்போது உலகக் கோப்பை நெருங்கி வருகிறது, எந்த கால்பந்து வீரர்களும் உலகக் கோப்பையை புறக்கணிக்கவில்லை என்பதில் நான் மகிழ்ச்சியடைகிறேன்.
“எனக்கு தெளிவாகத் தெரிகிறது: கத்தார் ஒரு தவறு. தேர்வு மோசமானது. நான் ஆச்சரியப்படுகிறேன்: புதிய FIFA தலைவர் [Gianni Infantino] ஏன் கத்தாரில் வசிக்கிறார்? அவர் உள்ளூர் உலகக் கோப்பை அமைப்பின் தலைவராக இருக்க முடியாது. அதுதான் அவரது வேலை அல்ல. இதற்கு இரண்டு ஏற்பாட்டுக் குழுக்கள் உள்ளன – உள்ளூர் ஒன்று மற்றும் FIFA இன் ஒன்று.”
Cricket
Shammi Silva Re-Elected as Sri Lanka Cricket President for Fourth Consecutive Term
Shammi Silva has been re-elected as the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) president for the 2025-27 term, marking his fourth consecutive tenure at the helm of the nation’s cricket governing body. Silva secured the position uncontested at the 64th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Colombo on Monday.
A Controversial Yet Dominant Tenure
Silva’s leadership has not been without controversy. His previous term saw a high-profile clash with former Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe in 2023, which led to an interim committee being appointed after Sri Lanka’s poor performance in the ICC ODI World Cup. This move resulted in ICC suspending SLC, which led to Sri Lanka losing the hosting rights for the U19 Men’s World Cup, which was later held in South Africa.
Despite these setbacks, Silva regained control after a court ruling reinstated his administration, and he was later appointed as the president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in December 2023, replacing Jay Shah.
Challenges & Future Outlook
Sri Lanka Cricket has long been seen as a powerful and influential body, with internal politics often shaping its leadership. With financial mismanagement concerns highlighted in the Auditor General’s report, Silva’s administration faces the challenge of restoring credibility and ensuring better governance.
With the ICC ban lifted, Sri Lanka looks to rebuild its cricketing structure and improve performance on the international stage. The focus now shifts to upcoming bilateral series, the Asia Cup, and preparations for the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Stay tuned for more updates on Sri Lanka Cricket and the latest in the world of sports!
Cricket
Stephen Fleming Defends MS Dhoni’s Batting Position Amid Criticism
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming has defended MS Dhoni’s late entry in the batting order, stating that the legendary wicketkeeper-batsman cannot play an extended innings at full intensity due to lingering knee concerns.
The 43-year-old Dhoni faced criticism after coming in at No. 9 during CSK’s 50-run loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Chepauk. In the next match against Rajasthan Royals on March 30, 2025, he batted at No. 7 when CSK required 54 off 25 balls but managed just 16 off 11 as his team fell short by six runs.
Fleming’s Explanation on Dhoni’s Role
Fleming emphasized that Dhoni carefully assesses the match situation before deciding when to bat.
“It’s all about timing. MS judges his body and situation. His knees aren’t what they used to be, so he can’t bat for 10 overs at full intensity. He will step in based on the game’s demands,” Fleming explained at the post-match press conference.
The CSK coach reiterated that Dhoni remains too valuable to the team for his leadership and wicketkeeping and that sending him in too early could be a strategic misstep.
“From around the 13th or 14th over, he assesses the situation and decides. He trusts other batters early on but steps up when needed.”
CSK’s Struggles in the Powerplay Cost Them the Match
Fleming also pinpointed CSK’s poor powerplay performance as a key reason for their loss against Rajasthan Royals. While RR blasted 79/1 in the powerplay, CSK only managed 42/1,
Cricket
Inaugural ‘Battle of Green’ Set to Ignite a New School Cricket Rivalry
Cricket enthusiasts in Mirigama and Giriulla are in for an exciting showdown as D.S. Senanayake College, Mirigama, and Wickramshila National School, Giriulla, prepare to launch their first-ever “Battle of Green” big match.
This historic encounter will take place at the Mirigama Public Grounds, marking the beginning of a thrilling annual rivalry between the two schools. Fans from both towns are expected to gather in large numbers, adding to the electric atmosphere of this inaugural clash.
The introduction of the Battle of Green is a significant milestone for school cricket in the region, providing a platform for young cricketers to showcase their talent while fostering sportsmanship and competitive spirit.
Stay tuned for match updates, player insights, and exclusive coverage on Sri Lankan Sports TV.
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