England 2018 World Cup Bid

[Ian Price]

FIFA are totally corrupt in my opinion. Money talks. They've always refused to have external organisations take a close look at what they do and how they operate - not sure if it's true or not but apparently on of the reasons they are based in Switzerland is so they can get around lots of disclosure of information regulations. Might have to read up on that.

[Philly Q]

The media coverage is all getting a bit hysterical.

On the one hand, we've got Andy Anson, the chief executive of England's bid accusing Fifa voters of lying over who they'd vote for, giving rise to dramatic headlines like "They smiled, shook hands and promised to vote for England... they lied!"

Then we've got stories about Russian bid chief Alexey Sorokin telling the England team on Wednesday his country had enough votes in the bag - and that's taken as proof that it was all "a fix".   "Sorokin clearly knew that Russia had enough and he told the English that."


Surely they could've been lying to Alexey as well?  And why should Fifa voters be revealing anything about how they're going to be voting anyway?  :?

[Matt77]

Seriously - has bidding for 2018 cost us £450 million?

Heard it on the radio, thinking about it, it's the cost to stage the bid and lost guaranteed revenue.  It's a pointless figure really but shows what was riding on the decision.

Got to stop listening to Talk Sport!

The actual cost of our bid is meant to be £11 million. I'd pay £450 million if I had it just to not have to listen to 8 years of hype and how we are 'going to win it this time.'

[Ratrod]

I'm glad Holland/Belgium didn't get it.

It would have been a financial and legal nightmare. We can't afford it and it's rediculous to change laws for four weeks of football.

Fifa is right at home in Russia. Right in the middle of corruption and mafia. Loads of vodka, roebles, caviar, whores and police escorted armoured limousines.

[Dmoney]

yeah...

I'm surprised nobody picked up on this being released as part of the wikileaks thing earlier in the morning...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11893886

[MrBump]

There was a big push in the right-wing UK press to blame the BBC and Panorama in particular for us not getting the bid...

[Sifu Ben]

Except if those stories are true then we never had a chance anyway.

[Dmoney]

there was a politician on BBC News yesterday asking for an inquiry into football in general in the UK.
Not so much the bid, although BBC News presenters didn't really understand that, although it was clear (honestly, BBC News presentation is awful).

It would mean an investigation in clubs, how they are run, all kinds of things. could be fun.

I saw one guy say "I have failed to see any explanation as to how the timing of the panorama story was in the public interest...". I guess the key phrase is 'timing of', because I think most fans of football who'd like to see a world cup here would probably be interested in allegations of corruption within FIFA.

I've also heard people blame Birmingham fans for rioting, but eastern European leagues have notoriously violent fans don't they?

I'm not that bothered. It just seems like another thing that (to add to the many other things) is corrupt.

[Sifu Ben]

I think Graham Taylor said it best "The only surprise is that people are surprised."

[JDC]

everyone is corrupt to some extent, it's just part of the human condition and in relation to their surroundings

[Dmoney]

everyone is corrupt to some extent, it's just part of the human condition and in relation to their surroundings

Spoken like a true misanthrope. you and me both, brother.

[bucketshred]

there was a politician on BBC News yesterday asking for an inquiry into football in general in the UK.
Not so much the bid, although BBC News presenters didn't really understand that, although it was clear (honestly, BBC News presentation is awful).

It would mean an investigation in clubs, how they are run, all kinds of things. could be fun.

I saw one guy say "I have failed to see any explanation as to how the timing of the panorama story was in the public interest...". I guess the key phrase is 'timing of', because I think most fans of football who'd like to see a world cup here would probably be interested in allegations of corruption within FIFA.

I've also heard people blame Birmingham fans for rioting, but eastern European leagues have notoriously violent fans don't they?

I'm not that bothered. It just seems like another thing that (to add to the many other things) is corrupt.

There are a few Polish clubs which areextremely violent. Proper mental bastrds and nothing like muppett films like the Football Factory.

Paddy

[Dmoney]

parts of former Yugoslavia has some pretty crazy fellas too.

[Elliot]

Well given that we got the Olympics and then immediately started whinging about how much it costs and how all the benefits are going to London (the austerity games again) - I can't see that the English deserve the World cup.  

However, that doesn't detract from the fact that FIFA act like a international criminal organisation from some James Bond film - Sepp Blatter even sounds and looks like a Bond uber-villain.  The worst example to me was telling bidding countries they had to pass laws giving tax and legal concession (especially on restrictions of employment rights) to FIFA and its sponsors and that this had to be kept secret, or it would affect that country's bid - all credit to the Netherlands for telling FIFA to spin on a pole and perhaps sacrificing their bid.  

Maybe national FAs should boycott FIFA until it becomes transparent - especially in its criteria for selecting countries - after all the £X million spent could have been used to good effect providing sporting facilities at home rather than lining the pockets of scum.

[nfe]

there was a politician on BBC News yesterday asking for an inquiry into football in general in the UK.
Not so much the bid, although BBC News presenters didn't really understand that, although it was clear (honestly, BBC News presentation is awful).

It would mean an investigation in clubs, how they are run, all kinds of things. could be fun.

I saw one guy say "I have failed to see any explanation as to how the timing of the panorama story was in the public interest...". I guess the key phrase is 'timing of', because I think most fans of football who'd like to see a world cup here would probably be interested in allegations of corruption within FIFA.

I've also heard people blame Birmingham fans for rioting, but eastern European leagues have notoriously violent fans don't they?

I'm not that bothered. It just seems like another thing that (to add to the many other things) is corrupt.

There are a few Polish clubs which areextremely violent. Proper mental bastrds and nothing like muppett films like the Football Factory.

Paddy

And they've sent it to Russia where black players routinely have bananas thrown at them.