Warner Reaffirms England 2018 Backing
FIFA vice-president Jack Warner has reaffirmed his backing for England’s bid to host the 2018 World Cup, urging the USA to reconsider a rival bid by saying that it would be a ‘distant second’.
Said Warner: ‘In 2006, England’s bid was the best. I believe it’s still the best. They must talk to their European colleagues and convince them not to bid.’
Warner is viewed as one of the most powerful men in world football and his importance can be traced back to England’s failed 2006 World Cup bid, when three of England’s five votes came from him.
But the 65-year-old president of Concacaf, which covers North and Central America, and the Caribbean, did warn that he would not vote against a bid from the USA should the two go head to head to host the 2018 World Cup.
He commented: ‘No, it would be political suicide for me to go against my own federation’s country. But I don’t think USA would get the requisite number of votes in total to win the bid so I would urge them not to bid, allowing Concacef and our friends to support England. Then, perhaps, the USA could do a deal to host the 2022 World Cup.’
