FIFA 2018 World Cup Bid: England’s unsporting reaction to Russian victory
The English bid to host the FIFA World Cup in 2018 was said to be one of the most convincing - with FIFA President Sepp Blatter himself describing it as “excellent and remarkable”. England are estimated to have spent the vast amount of fifteen million pounds
on their whole bidding campaign, with the ‘three lions’- David Cameron, Prince William and David Beckham being the front most faces of the technically strong bid. When Blatter announced that Vladimir Putin’s Russia had won the race and would stage the event
in 2018, the English reaction can be called anything but gracious.
Reports yesterday claimed that in the light of England’s failure to host the Cup, Mr. Burden has resigned from his position from the English Football Association (the FA). Roger Burden is the FA’s acting chairman and was appointed in May of this year. The
BBC reported on Friday the 4th of December, that Burden had ‘withdrawn his application for the permanent post over England's 2018 World Cup vote failure.’ He was expected to acquire the position on a permanent basis later on in this month. Burden
is also the chairman of Gloucestershire FA and the National Game Board. When Lord Triesman left his position as chairman of the FA, it was Burden who had recently rose among the ranks of the FA to acquire this position. Lord Triesman had stated the reason
for his resignation could be attributed to the scandal and how the media had ‘entrapped’ him. Triesman was alleged to have accused fellow bidders Russia and Spain of corruption and bribery in particular. He denied the claims and stepped down from his official
position in an attempt to not stain the English World Cup bid, although critics argued that the damage had already been done.
Burden stated that his decision to step down was primarily FIFA’s fault and that the voting process had left him disillusioned with the football governing body. His official statements in the press were as follows:
“I recognise that an important part of the role is liaison with FIFA, our global governing body," said Burden. "I'm not prepared to deal with people whom I cannot trust and I've withdrawn my candidacy," added the 64-year-old.” Burden was clearly referring
to votes being ‘promised’ to him, David Cameron and Prince William from the official voting panel for FIFA, numbering a meagre twenty two men. He claimed that he found it “difficult to believe” that the method of deciding the winning bid “was an objective
process”. England’s World Cup bidding ambassador, Viv Anderson echoed Burden’s sentiments in a more confrontationally harsh tone, branding the voting process as a “joke”. On BBC’s Radio Live 5, Anderson was heard questioning FIFA’s undisputed power, branding
it an “old boys' club".
Graham Taylor, a former England manager delivered the crushing comments concerning FIFA, lamenting that “FIFA, for me, is full of people who say 'yes' to your face and 'no' behind your back. Their reputation has not changed for many years. We (England) have
little or no influence; we are considered to be arrogant and know-alls and FIFA don't have to answer to anyone”. The England bid’s chief executive Andy Anson rued the final decision made by FIFA and described the expenditure undertaken by his country (amounting
to three million pounds) on technicalities as “money down the drain.” He made an indirect swipe at the 2018 winner Russia and 2022 winner Qatar, by stating that the “two bids with the worst technical reports had won”. Another former English manager criticized
the vote as being “a complete and utter sham”.
Anson explained his disappointment on being promised the votes, grieving that "Some of those didn't materialize, I don't know which ones." Reports have now emerged (from the BBC’s sports’ editor’s article, suitably titled ‘Anger, Despair and Bewilderment’),
naming and defaming those who gave their word to the English Prime Minister and the Prince, but not their vote. The five are understood to be Jack Warner from Trinidad and Tobago, Chung Jong Moon from Korea, Marios Lefkaritis a Cyprus national, Jacques Anouma
from the Ivory Coast and lastly, an American named Chuck Blazer who is said to have given his word to Chuck Warner concerning his vote for the English bid. Perhaps, the only official member of the England bid who did not launch a scathing attack on FIFA, or
the Russian winners is Prince William, who gave a subdued statement to the press, "I'm very disappointed, as are the rest of the team” and apologised to fans “back home that this has happened.”
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