DOHA - Qatar's size, rather than its fierce summer heat or the fact it is an Islamic country, could rule it out of contention to host the World Cup in 2022, the head of FIFA's inspection team hinted on Thursday.

Qatar would be the smallest host country since Uruguay staged the inaugural tournament in 1930 but has stressed the advantages of a compact World Cup, with none of the 12 stadiums more than an hour's traveling time from one another.

However, Harold Mayne-Nicholls, the head of FIFA's six-man inspection team, which has spent three days in the tiny Gulf State, said hosting the event in Qatar "would pose a number of logistical challenges".