By Duncan Mackay
British Sports Internet Writer of the Year
May 22 – England 2018 have managed to minimise the damage caused by Lord Triesman’s allegations about World Cup rivals Spain and Russia being involved in bribery, new bid leader Geoff Thompson (pictured) claimed tonight.
Thompson, who stepped into replace Triesman after he was forced to step down following damaging claims made in the Mail on Sunday, has used a visit to Madrid to attend the UEFA Champions League Final between Bayern Munich and Inter Milan, which the Italian side won 2-0, to try to repair relations.
He said: ”I believe we have succeeded in making this clear and thus maintaining the integrity of the FA and the bid.
“I saw my Spanish and Russian counterparts in Madrid and spoke to them at a personal level.
“It was encouraging to hear from them that they held no grudge against our bid.
“It was an unreserved apology and the bid made it clear we wished to disassociate ourselves from the comments.”
Thompson, a vice-president with both FIFA and UEFA, has been using his personal contacts in the past week to try to get England’s bid back on track, which he is confident that he has done.
He said: ”The situation in which the comments came out were sad on a personal level.
“It was important that any subsequent public statements reflected that these were not the views of England 2018 or the FA.
“It’s already become clear from my conversations with colleagues in the international football community and from comments by several FIFA ExCo (Executive Committee) members that our bid is still very intact.
“We believe we have a very strong case to bring the tournament to England and the events of the last week haven’t changed our credentials in the slightest.
“Our message is based on five main elements: Passion, diversity, technical, commercial, legacy.
“The passion of our fans is unquestionable.
“The diversity within our communities means any competing nation will receive a home-from-home welcome for its players, officials and supporters.
“We have 12 excellent candidate host cities and we have a collection of world-famous stadiums and a series of new builds that will ensure the best facilities for players, fans, administrators and partners.
“Commercially, we are offering FIFA the best ever tournament with maximum return for minimal risk.
“Our legacy offering will give England the ability to support the development of the domestic and global game.”
Thompson is hoping that the continued presence on England’s bid team of David Beckham will also help repair the damage caused by Triesman.
Beckham, who has today been visiting British troops serving in Afghanistan, has pledged he will do everything he can to help England’s bid.
Thompson said: ”David is a tremendous ambassador, not just for English football but for our whole country.
“He is recognised wherever he goes and his integrity and good grace reflect tremendously well on England and, of course, our bid.
“He will continue to be a tremendous advocate for the bid and his country.”
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