Yet more rumors of corruption inside FIFA have emerged, specifically regarding the process to bid for the World Cups in 2018 and 2022.
The Sunday Times , via the BBC , has submitted material that it gathered to the House of Commons Culture Media and Sport selection committee.
Sources and insiders close to England’s attempted bid for the 2018 World Cup have confirmed that they ran an intelligence-gathering operation against their rival bidders. In the end, Russia and Qatar both won the right to host the 2018 World Cup and 2022 World Cup respectively.
The Sunday Times has claimed that the executives for England 2018 amassed a document that compiled all of the intelligence and rumors about the other country’s bidding. British embassies and private companies were involved in this process. The publication didn’t provide a clear source or evidence of this though.
The Football Association has now released a statement in response to these allegations, and they insist that they complied with the rules and regulations that FIFA has outlined.
“The FA can confirm the England 2018 bid engaged with a number of parties around the world to provide general and background information on the progress of the bidding process within different countries and perspectives.
These were media and corporate affairs consultants engaged on a confidential basis to gather intelligence.
The fact the bid team had taken advice on intelligence gathering was referenced to Mr. Garcia [Michael Garcia conducted a two-year inquiry into alleged corruption within FIFA] as part of the investigative process.
The FA reiterates that it has fully complied with all disclosure requests made by Mr. Garcia.”
The piece also examines how FIFA’s vague rules had been exploited by England 2018 ahead of the poll that was conducted in December, 2010.
The Sunday Times has explained that Vladimir Putin, Russia’s President, enlisted the help of Sepp Blatter, FIFA’s president, in order to amass votes. Meanwhile another claim emerged that suggested Michel Platini, who is UEFA president and a voter, had been offered a Picasso painting to try and get his support.
Allegations also centred around Qatar’s ability to use its natural gas industry dominance to convince voters to back their bid.
Qatar and Russia have both insisted that they have done nothing wrong in acquiring the World Cup. A recent FIFA inquiry actually cleared them of any wrongdoing too, however it was heavily disputed.
[Image via Top News]
