British Prime Minister David Cameron has expressed doubts that the 2018 World Cup bidding process was conducted fairly.
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caption:David Cameron was part of the bidding process for the 2018 World Cup.
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Cameron led England’s bid to host the tournament along with David Beckham and Prince William in 2010, which ended in frustration when Russia won.
FIFA has opened an investigation into the process which saw Russia and Qatar awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. Nine members of the decision-making committee have resigned, but 13 remain in office, including FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
One of the members who resigned, Jack Warner, denied fresh allegations of corruption that were levelled at him this week.
Speaking to The Sun, Cameron claims the result was "sorted" in advance and that a number of promised votes did not materialise.
He said: "I would be very careful what I say … It was a mad 24 hours of intensive lobbying which David Beckham and Prince William and I were doing together. We thought we were making progress. I think the whole thing was … You choose your words carefully. I would say 'sorted' before we went into it. All I can tell you is there are a lot of people who promised they were going to vote for me. And in the end, I think we got one vote."
Cameron also said that despite frustrations at his experience, he will be happy to be involved in the bidding process to host matches at Euro 2020.
He said: "I am going to try to help the authorities in Scotland, Wales and England who want to bid for packages. Since the Olympics we have a great record of competitions coming here. I think they are brilliant for your economy … They are a great advert for Britain."