Warner: England Can Win Race To Host 2018
FIFA vice-president Jack Warner insists that England can still win the race to host the 2018 World Cup, despite the controversy surrounding the FA.
Lord Triesman stepped down as England’s bid chairman after a media sting whereby he reportedly accused Spanish and Russian football federations of bribery.
However, Warner believes that England’s bid is still alive: ‘It was inappropriate but those things are now behind us and I think England’s bid is back on track.’
Warner said that Triesman’s decision to stand down quickly could benefit England’s bid: ‘The FA did it correctly, getting him to resign immediately, and there was not much damage done… very few people on the FIFA executive committee are talking about it.’
There are also bids in from Australia, Russia and the United States as well as joint bids from Belgium and the Netherlands and Portugal and Spain to host the 2018 tournament.
As head of the CONCACAF union of North and Central American and Caribbean football associations, Warner will effectively control three of the 24 votes on FIFA’s executive committee when it chooses the hosts in December.
