England 2018 Receives Boost In Fifa Report
In the midst of all the furore surrounding the BBC’s Panorama documentary exposing allegations of corruption within FIFA, England’s 2018 World Cup bid has received a substantial boost after a report from the world governing body highlighted that its bid would generate more income than any of its rivals.
England’s bid achieved a maximum rating in ticketing, television and media rights, sponsorship, hospitality and merchandising and licensing from the report issued by FIFA’s executive committee.
Whilst England got a maximum rating, its bid rivals Spain and Portugal were given a 91% score, Holland and Belgium’s bid received 87% and Russia scored 86%.
The news comes as a fillip to England’s chances after the much-publicised screening of the BBC documentary that accused three members of the FIFA committee, Nicolas Leoz, Issa Hayatou and Ricardo Teixeira, of taking payments from a sports marketing company in the late 1980’s.
The programme also accused FIFA vice-president Jack Warner of attempting to sell World Cup 2010 tickets to illegal touts.
As well as being strongly criticised by the England bid team for its timing and archaic content, the documentary has received a mixed response from other sections of the media who have questioned the validity of the content and the approach of investigative journalist Andrew Jennings.
The bid team now looks forward to FIFA’s decision on whether it will host the World Cup on Thursday with David Beckham, David Cameron and Prince William among the presentation team.
