The Football Association have signed a 'knowledge-sharing' deal with their counterparts in Qatar
Although the agreement covers a host of different areas attention will inevitably focus on whether the England senior team will travel to the host nation of the 2022 World Cup and play a high-profile friendly fixture.
“The FA is pleased to commit to this knowledge-sharing partnership with the Qatar Football Association,” chairman Greg Clarke said.
“We have a long history of collaboration with various national associations to share knowledge and experience to support the development of football."
Qatar's staging of the competition remains rooted in controversy, from the voting procedures that saw it awarded to the Gulf nation, through the ongoing treatment of migrant workers building the stadia and infrastructure needed to the recent political disputes between Qatar and some of their neighbouring countries.
The FA are thought to be preparing the ground for a bid to host the 2030 World Cup and, whatever reforms take place in FIFA there will always seemingly be a need for political manouevres and alliance-building if such a bid is to be successful.
But the potential sight of England giving their seal of approval to a new stadium in Doha would also be a magnet for protests from a number of different groups.