FIFA corrupted. Absolute FIFA corrupted absolutely

Thursday 2nd December. A time to remember for years to come, Russia and Qatar are announced as host for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups respectively. And possibly the day that FIFA bore the true depth of its corruption to the world.


Shock-waves rippled through the world. How had those two nations won the rights to host the World Cup? How had they managed it so convincingly? and why did the bids from England, the US and Australia do so poorly?

The media were quick to react with cries of foul play. The Daily Mail called it "the great Zurich stitch-up"  and the Times claimed, "The system of World Cup elections is abysmally corrupt. It is too small, making it easily manipulated, and it is too secret, protecting it from scrutiny." The Mirror went as far as to claim "Only Cameroon’s Issa Hayatou - ironically one of those named by Panorama on Monday - joined our Fifa delegate and former FA chairman Geoff Thompson in backing the bid"

Don't accuse just the British media of jealousy however as many other newspapers ran similar stories. El Mundo chose "The power of gas and oil." for their headline. Whilst the Dutch paper AD printed "With Russia and Qatar FIFA has chosen its guarantees in gold and oil,". The pick of the bunch, however, has to be The Seattle Times who printed "Qatar? Really?" as their headline.

To those who are currently thinking 'well, sour grapes aren't they?', yes and no. Yes, every paper quoted comes from a losing bidding nation and I'm sure they would all have loved to have the World Cup and their frustration at losing is understandable. But no because the manner in which the voting took place. Here's the breakdown.

"2018 VOTING

First round: England 2 votes (eliminated), Netherlands-Belgium 4; Spain-Portugal 7; Russia 9. (No absolute majority)

Second round: Netherlands-Belgium 2; Spain-Portugal 7; Russia 13. (Russia obtain absolute majority)"

"2022 VOTING

First round: Australia 1 (eliminated); Japan 3; United States 3; South Korea 4; Qatar 11. (No absolute majority)

Second round: Japan 2 (eliminated); South Korea 5; United States 5; Qatar 10. (No absolute majority)

Third round: South Korea 5 (eliminated); United States 6; Qatar 11. (No absolute majority)

Fourth round: United States 8; Qatar 14. (Qatar obtain absolute majority)"

A few points here are that;

1. Between the First and Second rounds of the 2018 bid, two voters change their minds and vote for Russia instead of voting for the Netherlands/Belgium bid.
2. Both Russia and Qatar are surprisingly close to an absolute majority (13 votes) from the first round.

Andy Anson, England's bid leader, has led the calls for reform. He said "Australia had a very good bid and got one vote, we had a very good bid and got two, the USA had an unbelievably strong technical bid and got three. Six votes in the first round between those three, there's something not quite right". His argument in this is sound, all three bids were praised by FIFA for their potential to host the world cup and were seen as the front runners for their respective bids, so to do so badly means foul play must be suspected. Anson's frustration is evident, "When you have the best technical bid, fantastic inspection visits, the best economic report, and, from what people told us, the best presentation, it's quite hard to stomach that all that seemed to count for absolutely nothing".

England's bid was called "excellent and remarkable" by FIFA chief Sepp Blatter yet Anson was informed that in the summary speech he gave before they all voted Mr Blatter reminded voters of the evils of British media. This, apart from being unprofessional, sounds like a personal attack on the English bid by FIFA. 


The voters themselves have come under fire too. A statement from a government official who was told that England's bid was "assured" 5 votes. The failure to follow through on such promises has severely damaged FIFA's credibility in the eyes of the English FA.


The media has been blamed by many for the loss of votes during the bidding process. The investigations by Panorama and the Sunday Times certainly ruffled a few feathers. Japan's committee member Junji Ogura revealed he believed the media had 'played a role' in England's bid. However Anson was quick to jump to their defense stating "They are saying to us that our media killed us but I don't believe that for one minute, but that's what we are being told". The media should not have influenced any aspect of the voting and their attempts to root out corruption in FIFA is something to be admired rather than criticised. The mere fact that FIFA was quick to criticise shows how they are a tight-knit elitist group who only seek to serve their own aims.


Premiership managers have also been quick to throw in their opinions. The general consensus is anger at FIFA for not awarding the right to host World Cup to England. Redknapp said the decision was "beyond belief" and Bruce suggested England "are not well liked" by FIFA. Allardyce, however, suggested that holding the World Cup in Eastern Europe for the first time may have been the reason. The fact that managers from other nations such as Wenger, Houllier and Moyes were also angered by the decision highlights what many see as a gross injustice in the game.  


Marc Wilmots, a Belgian footballer and part of the Netherlands/Belgium bid, said "Russia is a political choice and Qatar is an economic choice," and that he felt "sport has been the loser with the decision for these two World Cups.". The anti FIFA


Potentially more frustrating than the betrayal of trust from FIFA and the corruption within, has to be the fact that technically inferior and 'risky' bids won over this English, Australian and American bids.

Russia was heavily criticised for its poor infrastructure and lack of government backing whilst Qatar's bid was branded high risk by investigators and issues were raised about the scorching temperatures in summer (expected to pass 50 degrees). This was further compounded by allegations of trying to organise votes with the Spain/Portugal bid.


Yes, Blatter's 'noble' intentions of bringing football to places it barely touches but this move just reeks of oil money and corruption. This policy of developing football in other nations is not going entirely to plan as Poland and Ukraine rush to be ready for the Euros in 2012 and have been warned numerous times to hurry along their huge plans for staging the tournament. Outside the footballing world, picking places in order to develop them can backfire massively with the Commonwealth Games in Delhi a prime example.


I don't want to discredit what a massive success that both Russia and Qatar have won the rights but the whole situation has the aura of something being wrong. Yes, England is not FIFA's favourite nation and yes Blatter wanted to develop football but does that justly explain the results of the voting? I think not. After all the corruption investigations I don't feel it is unfair to think foul play has occurred.