Exclusive: Cryuff and Gullit confident that Holland/Belgium bid can beat odds

By Andrew Warshaw

May 20 – Holland and Belgium may be rank outsiders when it comes to the 2018 World Cup but Johan Cryuff and Ruud Gullit (pictured) are convinced their green campaign will be a powerful enough argument to cause the biggest ever upset in bidding history.

While their rivals are concentrating on stadium infrastructure and legacy, the Dutch/Belgian campaign has targeted environmental issues in an effort to persuade any wavering voters among FIFA’s Executive Committee that there is more to staging a World Cup than simply the game itself.

While initially being reluctant to join the bid team due to business commitments and the fact he is based in Catalonia, where he is still passionate about his beloved Barcelona, Cruyff recently capitulated and took his place an as Ambassador alongside Gullit, the bid president, at the recent bid book hand-over ceremony in Zurich.

Like the other members of the Dutch delegation, both arrived at FIFA headquarters by bicycle, a symbolic gesture designed to cement their commitment to an environmentally friendly World Cup.

As part of their energy-saving campaign, the Dutch and Belgians are planning to distribute thousands of bikes for free to fans if they win the 2018 vote on December 2.

Cruyff insists it is no gimmick.

“Football belongs to future generations but the world has a problem with the environment and it’s important to educate the youth of tomorrow,” he told insideworldfootball in an exclusive interview.

“Ours is a green campaign.

“It may have little to do with football per se but it’s just as important.

“There is not enough sport played in streets at and at schools.

“Too many kids sit around at computers.”

Cruyff, now 62, remains one of the most iconic footballers of his or any other generation, the man who epitomised Total Football in the 1970s whose views on the development of the game make for captivating listening.

“Whether FIFA will be persuaded by our message I don’t know but I am passionate about it,” he says.

“What I do know is that football is the biggest sport in the world and is intrinsically linked with the environment.

“We have a responsibility for that.

“Our two countries are relatively small with most of the venues close to each other.

“Why take a plane when you can travel by bicycle in a friendly environment?

“The world is in a crisis.

“Something needs to change.”

The multi-lingual Cruyff, whose country staged Euro 2000 with Belgium, believes they have just as strong a case for hosting the World Cup as any of their European rivals - perhaps more so.

“We have never had it before yet we in Holland have just as strong a record as, say, England on the field.

“Should a country with one of the biggest budget deficits deserve to spend millions more?

“It’s not a good example.

“It’s a bad one in fact.”

Gullit is a little more guarded in his comments but is just as convincing.

“We will be able to offer FIFA the greenest World Cup ever,” he says.

“The ecological impact will be reduced by 50 per cent thanks to an environmental protection plan the world has never seen.

“The game will be played 14 truly green stadiums.”

Gullit believes the compactness of Holland and Belgium, with its easily accessible transport network, gives his bid a distinct advantage.

“This is only the beginning.

“There is still a lot of lobbying to do.

“I don’t know what the others are offering.

“I do know we have made a lot of progress.

“People who say that our green campaign is just a last-ditch attempt to court popularity are maybe afraid of us.”

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