FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke has confirmed that the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will not be held in June or July.
Doubts over the scheduling of the tournament were voiced soon after the nation won the bid in December 2010.
Football Associations from around the world have repeatedly claimed that it will be too hot to stage the competition during Qatar's summer, where temperatures can reach as high as 50 degrees Celsius.
"I think it will be held between November 15 and January 15 at the latest," Valcke is quoted as saying by Sky Sports News.
"If you play between 15 November and the end of December that's the time when the weather conditions are best, when you can play in temperatures equivalent to a warm spring season in Europe, averaging 25 degrees. That would be perfect for playing football."
Brazil will host this year's World Cup before Russia stages the 2018 tournament ahead of Qatar.
Jack Prescott
