Did Panorama cost us the World Cup

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Did Panorama cost us the World Cup Rumours are spreading fast that England lost its bid for the 2018 World Cup because of the media investigations by BBC’s Panorama, along with the Sunday Times, that turned up corruption on the FIFA executive committee.

This speculation is being fuelled by statements from a Japanese member of that very committee, Junji Ogura.  Ogura says that the media investigations absolutely turned the committee against England, which was knocked out during the first round after only gathering up two votes.

He said that the investigations caused damage.  To him, it appeared that England would be a strong contender for the bid, but that all changed after the media investigations.

It was further alleged that Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, gave an address to the executive committee members before their votes, reminding them about the evils of media.  This information was revealed by England’s bid boss, Andy Anson.  Anson reported that someone in the room at the time told him about Blatter’s comments. All Anson would say was if that were true, it certainly would not have helped England’s cause at all.

Wales back English World Cup bid

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Wales back English World Cup bid Jonathan Ford, FAW chief says that England winning the World Cup bid for 2018 would be beneficial to his country and to the Football Association of Wales.

The FAW is going through a difficult time right now, as it is seated at the bottom in Group G for its bid to qualify in Euro 2012.  They have lost all three opening games.  John Toshack was removed as coach in September after bad results saw his career with Wales come to an end.

As of yet, there has been no permanent replacement, although it is reported that one will be chosen in December.  Among the names being considered are Brian Flynn, Ian Rush, Chris Coleman, Lars Lagerback, John Hartson, and Lawrie Sanchez.

Jonathan Ford believes that given a new coach at the helm, some of the talented young players coming to the senior side, and a bit of luck, Wales can once again qualify for major finals by the 2018 World Cup.

Right now, that seems a long way off, but not so much when you consider they haven’t seen a major finals since 1958.

Rightly so, Ford says the concentration now must be getting the team in order to focus on that goal.

David Beckham hopeful for London World Cup

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David Beckham hopeful for London World Cup David Beckham says he believes that the FIFA executive committee will base their decision on the World Cup bids on the merits.  He made these remarks after suggestions that perhaps the committee would hold a grudge against England for the media exposure of the two corrupted officials found out earlier in the process.

He says that the members can be trusted because they are footballers and, in the end, they will do what is best for football.  Of course, being a member of the final bidding presentation, he believes that was is best for football is to hold the 2018 World Cup here in England.

To that end, he, Prince William, and Prime Minister David Cameron have been pressing hard for England’s bid.  Beckham has met in private with some of the executive committee members, but rather not say just who.  Prince William has also been lobbying members and taking meetings.

It is felt that Spain/Portugal and Russia may have an edge in the bidding war, but Beckham says such things are merely speculation and no one can know anything for certain until the decision is made.

Beckham compares his effort with the bidding team to similar challenges in his sports career.  He says that it is a tough fight against some strong competition, but the key is to keep to your strengths.

He says that when it comes time to act for your country, you must give all you possibly can and trust that you have done your best.

FIFA 2018 worth £3 billion

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FIFA 2018 worth £3 billion London has especially high stakes in the possibilities of a FIFA 2018 World Cup Event.  The country as a whole would be expected to benefit from about £3 billion spent on investment and tourism.

Out of that, it is estimated that London itself would receive in the neighbourhood of £1 billion.  This is according to Neale Coleman, advisor to the mayor of London.  Coleman is also on the London United team, which represent the city’s interests in the FIFA bid.  As of now, he says the bid is tight and there is no emerging lead.

Coleman will fly to Zurich with Mayor Johnson to b present for the bid announcement, due on Thursday.

London’s main stadium would be Wembley and it is expected that, should England win the bid, it would host the World Cup opening ceremonies, along with the first and last matches.  Other facilities that would be used would be the Olympic Stadium, Arsenal’s Emirates, along with an arena in White Hart Lane.

It is predicted that nearly all of London’s club grounds would be used in some capacity by competing teams.  Available facilities for training and practice would be booked solid.

The media would play a large role in the booking of accommodations, restaurants and the like.  It is estimated that 20,000 strong reporters from print, television, radio, and digital mediums would headquarter themselves in London.

Add to that thousands of fans and tourists and you can begin to imagine the magnitude of a World Cup event on London and the whole of the country.

Scottish Football Association struggles with referee crisis

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Scottish Football Association struggles with referee crisis The Scottish Football Association is in deep trouble dealing with the current referee’s crisis.  A call out to several other countries resulted in a response from Polish officials and the Scottish Football Association thought it had a match on, when it appears they did not.

The Polish referees who had agreed to participate in the Morton v Falkirk match backed out and now it is quite apparent that the whole Polish FA has backed out on their promise to help the Scottish Football Association by sending 12 match officials.

This has resulted in the cancellation of the 26 November Morton v Falkirk match and will result in further cancellations throughout the Scottish FA.

It looked like a situation where matches would be cancelled had been avoided when the Polish FA agreed to send officials, but the association reversed itself at the seeming last minute.  As of yet, no explanation for the reversal is clear, but the Scottish FA has had trouble enticing the aid of other countries since the problems with its own match officials began.

The threat of a similar strike action on the part of Welsh match officials was beaten down when the FAW sent emails that they said were letters of resignation and the referees were given the choice to agree to work matches or resign.  The threatened expulsion destroyed the unity of the protest and all hopes of strikes fell apart at that point.

Whatever the reason, it is clearly apparent that other countries want no part of the Scottish crisis, cancelled matches or no.