If you thought only digesting losses on the sporting field was tough, you should have tuned in to the FIFA World Cup bids for 2018 and 2022 which were won by Russia and Qatar respectively.While the whole process of (s) electing which country would be given the right to host the high profile World Cup did not take much time, it left England in tears as they had almost taken it for granted that their bid was the best.Almost two days after the Englishmen have been brought down to terra firma, the big point remains that nothing can be taken for granted in high profile bids like this. I am not one bit surprised by the reactions which have come from the Englishmen, be it the average football lover or their own media.Words like “rigging”, ” mafia” and so on are being mentioned openly and so are insinuations about the process of choosing a host nation being flawed. My point is the 22 members who were part of the FIFA committee must have gone by some facts, figures and projections before taking such big decisions. That England went out in the first round with only two votes, one of them from an Englishman, is a big message about their own popularity.The English bid was supposed to have been comprehensive with solid financial projections. But what can be understood from the voting pattern is that England was not at all popular and since the event had to be allotted to a European country, Russia got it.advertisementIf one flips through the list of countries which have hosted the FIFA World Cup since 1930, with the first edition held in Uruguay, it is clear the event stayed in Europe or South America. There was a departure in 1994, when the United States of America got to host it.I still remember what I saw on television. There seemed to be a total lack of interest in the World Cup. It certainly was not the best advertisement for football as the world saw it.Again, after 1994, the host countries were France (1998), South Korea and Japan (2002), Germany (2006) before South Africa came up as a surprise host for the 2010 World Cup.It is well known that when South Africa was chosen, there was anger, jealousy and outrage among so many countries. It was as if South Africa was the worst possible choice with doubts over their organisation skills. Memories of the 2010 FIFA World Cup are still fresh. From Shakira’s ‘ Waka Waka’ at the opening ceremony to pulsating matches day in and day out, South Africa showed the world what it was capable of.If Russia has been chosen, FIFA knows that the World Cup is still in Europe only, though England will never reconcile. At a time when not just Englishmen but others are also demanding that the people who choose host nations should be larger in number, I think the present style is fine.As soon as Russia got the nod, it was time to look at 2022. Again, Asia was counting its chances and the Aussies thought they would have a good chance. But there were a couple of tricks played and how Qatar was chosen is something which can be debated for a long time.It does not require rocket science to understand that FIFA boss Sepp Blatter is a very shrewd man. He knows in the name of broad- basing the sport, the World Cup is bound to travel to newer continents.So when the Middle East as a region was looked at, Qatar had to be picked. It is here the role played by Asian Football Confederation president Mohamed Bin Hammam came into focus.When one factors the AFC’s might in terms of votes it has, there are 46 members. Surely, Blatter must have factored that when the next FIFA elections take place in 2014, the AFC countries will be behind him.Call it a masterstroke or the art of booking votes for the future, it’s not just politicians but sports administrators who play their cards well.You may crib about Qatar being conservative and so on and how there are restrictions on alcohol in public. If you look at the other side, minus the European lager louts, handling the crowds will be easier in Qatar.Agreed, temperatures hover above 45 degrees centigrade but it’s not like that all the time in Qatar. When you see Europe under snow now and football still being played, you know what this sport is all about.There is big money in Qatar and you can be sure they will splurge in such a big way, the World Cup infrastructure will be top- class.advertisementThey have held big sporting events before and the Doha Asian Games in 2006 was a big success.Henceforth, the heavyweights in Europe, North America and Australia will do well to realise that there is a big change now in the way giant sporting bids are being decided.If the USA could lose two successive Olympic bids and Rio got the nod for the 2016 Olympic Games, the FIFA World Cups of the future are indeed going to be defining. And the losing nations should stop whining! read more