A FIFA World Cup taskforce on Tuesday called for a shortened 2022 World Cup in Qatar to open on November 26 with the final to be played on December 23, a source told AFP.

Players would have to be released for World Cup duty only on November 19, just a week before the opening match.

A tournament from the end of November to the end of December was “the most viable period” for the World Cup, the taskforce decided, according to a FIFA statement.

A final decision will be made by the FIFA executive committee at a meeting in Zurich on March 19 and looks likely to be approved despite Europe’s top clubs stressing their opposition.