There was major disappointment and dejection amongst the fans, players and bosses of the three major countries that missed out on football hosting despite putting in massive bids as the FIFA awards the 2018 World Cup to Russia and the 2022 World Cup the
tiny Gulf state of Qatar.
There was major disappointment for England and their 2018 World Cup bid chief Andy Anson lambasted the governing body of the game and the voting system that it has in place by claiming that there is no point in countries like England, Australia or the United
States bidding to host World Cup finals.
Anson was adamant that the FIFA has not done enough to put in a fair system in place and it has to look into changing their voting system.
The Russians won the rights to stage the 2018 while one of the favourites for winning the bid England was thrown out of the equation within the first round of voting amassing a mere two votes.
One of that votes was cast by their own representative who clearly meant that the English have few fans in the governing body of the game, despite having the best infrastructure for the game in the world with their leagues attracting the best players from
all around the world.
Anson added that England hardly have any regrets over how the bids were treated and the awarding decisions made, he was furious at the manner in which they presented their bid but voiced his concerns over England's rival bidders.
The Chief of the English bid also opined that major nations like Australia and the United States have similar concerns as they feel that the process was unfair on them also as the 2022 World Cup went to Qatar which will become the first Muslim nation to
host the tournament.
"If you look at bids like ours like Australia, like the USA, we are clearly accountable, to you guys (the press), to the public to the government. We have to do things in the straight and ethical way. I think all three of those three bids will leave here
today with their heads held high knowing that they did everything as they should do. I don't know what else happened but clearly Qatar and Russia are formidable competitors," Anson told reporters in Zurich.
Similar sentiments were echoed by the manager one of the leading clubs in the English football scene Arsenal.
Their manager Arsene Wenger expressed his disappointment over FIFA’s decision to award the tournament to Russia.
Wenger added that he was a staunch supporter of the English bid and was bitterly disappointed over England’s failure.
Wenger, who is concentrating on the upcoming matches of his team, added that he was at odds to understand the decision, he added that the English bosses need to launch an inquiry into the bidding process.
He said: "I don't know where it went wrong. I am very sad because I supported that bid as much as I could."
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