Was the World Cup a stitch-up? Humiliated England loses out again... while fuming No 10 refuses to congratulate Russia
By Michael Seamark, Tim Shipman and Daniel Martin
Last updated at 1:59 AM on 3rd December 2010
England’s humiliating defeat in the race to host the 2018 World Cup sparked a bitter new ‘Cold War’ with Russia last night.
The £15million bid – spearheaded by David Cameron, Prince William and David Beckham – didn’t even get past the first round.
It secured just two of the 22 votes by committee members of football’s world governing body Fifa in a secret ballot – one of which was cast by England’s own FA chairman Geoff Thompson.
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Three wounded lions: A glum David Cameron, Prince William and David Beckham after the announcement
Pleased: Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin - who did not attend the ceremony - gives his reaction to the success
Last night Downing Street did little to hide its anger and said Mr Cameron had no plans to congratulate the Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin personally ‘at the present time’.
Shortly after Fifa president Sepp Blatter declared Russia the winner for 2018, he announced that Qatar, a tiny desert country which has never even qualified to play in the World Cup, would host the 2022 tournament, beating bids from Australia, the United States and a joint bid from Japan and South Korea.
Fifa’s controversial decisions reinforced suspicions that the voting process was corrupt and that the sport’s world governing body had been seduced by the energy-rich countries’ billions, meaning that England’s bid never stood a chance.
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Disappointment for England: FIFA President Sepp Blatter unveils Russia as the 2018 World Cup hosts
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A ‘bitterly disappointed’ and visibly furious Mr Cameron said England had the best technical bid and what he believed was the strongest commercial bid, adding: ‘It turns out that’s not enough.’
Gutted: England 2018 International President David Dein and Prince William reacting to the announcement
Asked what more England could have done to secure the tournament, the Prime Minister replied: ‘I think that’s for others to say.’
A crestfallen Prince William, who spent the last three days in a hectic round of meetings with Fifa delegates, said: ‘Well, obviously we’re extremely disappointed and so is the team. We had a very strong bid but sadly it didn’t work out.
‘The guys are quite down at the moment but they put their whole backs into it. It’s very sad. We gave everything we could and the guys, I’m so proud of them.
When Mr Cameron met Russian president Dmitry Medvedev he had challenged him to a ‘good clean fight’ but last night the Prime Minister’s official spokesman refused to say the voting process was either good or clean.
Number 10 aides were furious with the outcome after Mr Cameron had made two flying visits to Zurich where the vote was held and been up into the small hours yesterday frantically lobbying for crucial votes.
What World Cup? Russians in Red Square, Moscow, appear indifferent to the news
Galling: Fans braved the cold near Tower Bridge to find out if England had managed to secure the World Cup
Desolation: Young children in Manchester react to the news that football is not coming home
But despite three days of intense lobbying in Zurich by the Three Lions, the England bid team feared they had been damaged by a backlash against corruption investigations into Fifa members by BBC’s Panorama and the Sunday Times.
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Yet after the polished final presentation yesterday morning – with speeches to Fifa delegates by Mr Cameron, Beckham and Prince William – hopes rose when Mr Blatter described the 30-minute performance as ‘excellent and remarkable’.
Behind closed doors, however, the Fifa delegates immediately wrecked any chance of sending the tournament back to England for the first time since 1966.
Despite growing optimism in recent days, England only got two votes in the first round of the secret ballot and were immediately eliminated.
Even rank outsiders Netherlands/Belgium got four votes, with Spain/Portugal receiving seven votes and Russia nine votes.
After a second round of voting, in which England did not feature, Russia was declared the clear winner – despite the notable absence in Zurich of Mr Putin, who didn’t bother to turn up and has accused the British media of running a ‘dirty tricks’ campaign.
Too little, too late: David Beckham and Chief Executive Andy Anson after England's loss
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He added: ‘When people look you in the eye and promise you something, you hope they live up to their word – but clearly that hasn’t happened.’
David Davies, the former FA executive chairman, said: ‘I heard one particular European voter who all the way through had seemed to be a certainty for England, let England down at the last minute. Now that was extraordinary.’
London mayor Boris Johnson said: ‘I certainly don’t think they made a decision based on the merits of the bid because I think the bid was absolutely fantastic.’
Former England manager Graham Taylor said: ‘What did we expect? Fifa, as far as I’m concerned, is full of people who say yes to your face and no behind your back.
‘I think it is about time that Fifa were really investigated.’
Fifa’s decision to hold secret ballots for the two tournaments together has already been criticised and Mr Anson said: ‘Running two World Cups together was clearly a mistake. It inevitably led to people with votes in 2018 doing deals with people involved in 2022.’
Jubilation: The Russian delegation react with delight as they are named the winners
Andy Anson, the chief executive of England’s bid, said some of the votes England were counting on had failed to materialise.He added: ‘When people look you in the eye and promise you something, you hope they live up to their word – but clearly that hasn’t happened.’
David Davies, the former FA executive chairman, said: ‘I heard one particular European voter who all the way through had seemed to be a certainty for England, let England down at the last minute. Now that was extraordinary.’
London mayor Boris Johnson said: ‘I certainly don’t think they made a decision based on the merits of the bid because I think the bid was absolutely fantastic.’
Former England manager Graham Taylor said: ‘What did we expect? Fifa, as far as I’m concerned, is full of people who say yes to your face and no behind your back.
‘I think it is about time that Fifa were really investigated.’
Fifa’s decision to hold secret ballots for the two tournaments together has already been criticised and Mr Anson said: ‘Running two World Cups together was clearly a mistake. It inevitably led to people with votes in 2018 doing deals with people involved in 2022.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1335188/World-Cup-2018-England-lose-bid-mafia-state-Russia.html#ixzz171xepiNw
