Three and easy: The proposed Al-Gharafa stadium in Doha where there could be three thirds played
Having decided to play the tournament in the middle of summer in a country where temperatures regularly exceed 40C, Fifa have been wrestling with the problem of how the world's best players are going to cope with the conditions.
Air conditioned, indoor stadiums will help, but even that might not be enough to keep them at a safe temperature according to Michael Beavon, a director of Arup Associates, the company responsible for developing the zero-carbon solar technology intended to cool them.
As a result, one proposal being considered by Fifa is to play the 90 minute games over three 30-minute periods if the temperature inside the stadiums exceeds 30c because of the potential health risks involved.
"There is a moderate risk of heat injury to the players between 24C-29C but if you go above that you have high and extreme risk of injury, " said Beavon, who was speaking to delegates at the Qatar Infrastructure Conference in London.
"The one thing Fifa do say, although it is for guidance, is if it's 32C they will stop a match and play three 30-minute thirds rather than two 45-minute halves.
"The commitment from Qatar was to provide conditions in the moderate band, so that matches would go ahead and be played as normal. Matches have to be played at an acceptable temperature and in safety so that Fifa do not intervene."
A Fifa spokesman attempted to calm fears that a huge break in tradition is about to happen last night, insisting nothing has been finalised at this stage.
He said: "This possibility has not been discussed. In any case, this would require a change in the Laws of the Game, and therefore would have to be analysed and approved by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) in the first place."
The laws of the game state that a match will last for two periods of 45 minutes, unless otherwise mutually agreed by the referee and both teams, though any changes to the usual 45-minute halves have always been to reduce the playing time for age-group matches.
However, the risk of dehydration and heat exhaustion is a very real threat given the dangerous temperatures in Qatar.
Despite these concerns, the oil-rich Arab state was awarded the tournament last December, beating off bids from Australia, South Korea and the United States.
Other possible solutions have been mooted, including the possibility of playing the tournament in the winter. That, though, would cause huge problems, not least because it would come in the middle of European domestic campaigns.
European leagues employ the majority of the world's best players and the move to a winter tournament would lead to a clash with Uefa, as well as the most powerful clubs, who would resist any attempt to deprive them of their best players.
Even though most European countries other than England have a winter break, they are not long enough to fit a World Cup tournament into, let alone the preparations.
It is this that has forced Fifa to look at other solutions, the risks highlighted when an inspection team visited Qatar in September last year when the temperature exceeded 40c.
That was not enough to prevent Qatar from winning the bidding process, but it is giving Fifa a major headache according to Beavon.
He said: "Players have to sweat their heat off when they are running around, and in this environment there is a risk of injury when you go above certain temperatures.
"I think Fifa are doing the right thing in having a contingency if the temperature was to rise above 29C in the stadium. It is very forward-thinking of them to take the players' safety into account, but I am convinced that the cooling systems will be 100 per cent reliable.
"Over the next 11 years the technology will be improved and of course there will be a back-up system. With a solar-powered system it is almost 100 percent guaranteed now, and we have no real fears that it would fail."
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