卡塔爾世界盃將在冬季舉行
FIFA has confirmed the 2022 World Cup final in Qatar will take place on Sunday, December 18.
國際足聯已經確認，2022年卡塔爾世界盃的總決賽將在12月18號舉行，這一天是星期天。
It comes after a FIFA taskforce recommended last month the tournament should be switched from summer to winter to avoid the searing heat of the Gulf in June and July, where temperatures can exceed 40C.
上個月，國際足聯特別工作組建議將比賽日期從夏季改爲冬季。這樣做能夠避開海灣地區六七月份的高溫天氣，這個時間段的氣溫能超過40攝氏度。
The decision to hold the first ever winter World Cup was taken more than four years after the most controversial award of a sporting event in history.
繼史上最具爭議的卡塔爾獲得主辦權後，關於是否舉辦冬季世界杯的爭論已經超過了四年。
Confirming the date for the 2022 World Cup final, Walter De Gregorio, FIFA's director of communications, said: 'This is for us an important step.
國際足聯通訊主管沃爾特•德•格雷格里奧表示，“對於我們而言，這是非常重要的一步。”
'Finally we know the end of the tournament. It's a Sunday and, by the way, it's the national day inQatar, so it fits perfectly.'
“我們終於知道比賽何時結束了，那天是星期天，恰好是卡塔爾的國慶日，相得益彰。”
He added: 'You have enough time to do your Christmas shopping.'
他補充說，“而且你還有充分的時間進行聖誕節採購。”
FIFA has indicated the 2022 tournament will also be shortened to 28 days, instead of the usual 32. The competition is likely to begin (featuring the hosts'Qatar) on November 21.
FIFA同時指出，2022年世界盃賽程將從32天縮短至28天，比賽可能在11月21日開幕。
The decision means the traditional and popular Boxing Day club matches will take place as usual – which will come as some comfort to the Premier League who have strongly opposed the switch.
該決定意味着傳統及受歡迎的節禮日比賽將照常舉行，此舉對於強烈反對日期改變的英超聯賽來說是種安慰。
UEFA - the body that governs European football - had pushed for the final to be as late as December 23.
歐洲足球的管理者歐足聯已經奮力爭取將決賽最晚推至12月23日。
The Qatar World Cup has been mired in controversy ever since the shock decision to stage the tournament in the desert kingdom which has no footballing history and a questionable human rights record.
卡塔爾是一個沙漠國家，且該國沒有足球歷史，人權問題令人生疑，世界盃卻在這裏舉行，因而卡塔爾世界盃自宣佈之日起便飽受爭議。
Sepp Blatter, FIFA's long-standing president, even admitted last year that staging the tournament in Qatar was a 'mistake' – justifying it by saying 'but one makes lots of mistakes in life'.
國際足聯主席賽普•布拉特曾在去年承認過在卡塔爾舉辦世界盃就是個“錯誤”，但他辯解道“人一生中會犯很多錯誤。”
Allegations of widespread corruption and collusion dogged the process from the outset.
有一種說法是從一開始這個事件就有腐敗和陰謀的的影子。
A report by investigator Michael Garcia into allegations of corruption remains secret, unpublished and subject to dispute between its author and FIFA.
一份調查員邁克爾•加西亞對腐敗指控的報告仍然處於保密、未公開的狀態，引發了作者和國際足聯之間的紛爭。
Vocabulary
mire：使陷入困境
outset：開始
collusion：勾結，共謀
