European clubs, leagues propose May-June 2022 WCup

NYON, Switzerland (AP) European football's club and league organizations on Tuesday proposed a May-June World Cup for Qatar in 2022.

FIFA is considering when to move the tournament to avoid the summer heat, and favors a November-December schedule.

UEFA President Michel Platini advocates playing games in January and February, despite the International Olympic Committee being against a World Cup in the run-up to the Winter Olympics in February 2022.

The European Club Association had previously suggested an April start, but Qatari officials complained that games would clash with Ramadan.

Now, the Nyon-based ECA and European Professional Football Leagues suggest a May 5 opener and a June 4 final to ensure less disruption to the European season. They say domestic leagues would start one or two weeks early in 2021, with a shorter mid-season break.

''The May option is the best alternative to the traditional June-July timing, since it retains the logical calendar order and avoids compressing such an important competition as the World Cup in the middle of the traditional and busy club football season (winter season),'' the organizations said in a statement.

''As such, simply avoiding this concentration makes the May option by far less intrusive compared to all winter proposals.''