By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
December 2 – So much for top-ranked technical and evaluation reports, Princes and Prime Ministers, an impeccable final presentation, words of commendation from FIFA President Sepp Blatter, history and tradition.
It was not difficult to understand the sense of sheer disbelief and devastation among England’s 2018 World Cup bid team after gaining just two votes in what can only be described as total humiliation – especially after such optimism and bringing out all their big guns.
Whilst Qatar’s 2022 success was arguably the biggest ever shock in bidding history, England’s stunning first-round defeat was almost as mind-boggling, as was Russia’s runaway victory with 13 votes in just two rounds of balloting.
The baffling early exit appeared to be the result of a widespread FIFA backlash following the recent campaign of corruption allegations in the English media which led to six prominent FIFA officials being sanctioned and two Executive Committee members being suspended.
England’s bid team had been constantly re-assured, as they lobbied every minute of the day and night with a lavish charm offensive, that they would not be penalised for the spate of bribery and collusion claims both in newspapers and television broadcasts.
The reverse, in the end, appears to have been the case.
Chuck Blazer, the United States FIFA member, hinted as much.
“It didn’t create a positive environment for the England bid ,” he said, “but it’s difficult to get into the minds of other people and know if it really was a factor.”
But no other explanation seemed possible as the ashen-faced bid team tried to come to terms with the result, apart perhaps from a dangerous sympathy vote going to outsiders Holland and Belgium that ultimately knocked England out.
England bid chief Andy Anson conceded that had always been a worrying scenario and was convinced England could have gone all the way had they survived a first-round elimination.
“There were other votes we thought we were going to get that would have taken us way into the second round and beyond,” he said, clearly referring to the three CONCACAF votes on which England had banked.
“When people look you in the eye and promise you something, you tend to hope they live up to their word, but clearly that’s not happened.”
International bid President David Dein, who took 116 flights across the world in a bid to drum up support, was equally angered.
“It was always going to be difficult and it wasn’t made any easier by certain elements,” he said.
“I’m not going to go into that now.”
Prime Minister David Cameron (pictured) flew home before the decision was announced having spent the past two days lobbying in Zurich.
“It is desperately sad,” he said.
“There hasn’t been a World Cup in England in my lifetime. I was hoping we could change that, but not this time.
I’m bitterly disappointed.
According to FIFA we had the best technical bid.”
Sebastian Coe, who masterminded London’s 2012 Olympic bid victory, admitted Russia’s presentation had been shrewd and may have helped seal their success.
The Russians pointed out that the World Cup had yet to be staged in Eastern Europe, compared with 10 times it has been held in the west of the continent.
“It was a very similar concept that Rio went for in Copenhagen when they won their bid for the 2016 Olympic Games just a few months ago,” he said.
If England were shocked by being knocked out in the first round of voting after a final presentation deemed “excellent and remarkable” by Blatter, the Spanish and Portuguese, for so long favourites to win 2018, were equally surprised at being beaten in just two rounds.
Only recently Spanish bid chief Miguel Angel Lopez declared that “all the fish are sold” amid reports that the Spanish-Portuguese campaign had snared seven or possibly eight votes as a result of alleged collusion with eventual 2022 winners Qatar.
They got seven votes allright but could not progress any further despite a valiant attempt by their prominent FIFA Executive Committee member Angel Maria Villar Llona to massage the egos of his colleagues during his final presentation that over-ran by 12 minutes as he heaped compliments on all and sundry.
Lopez, like his English counterparts, was clearly incensed that FIFA’s executive committee members had ultimately ignored their own technical reports.
Spain was rated equal first with England but ultimately went the same way.
“We’ve seen that the reports mean nothing,” he said.
“In future FIFA should ditch such inspection visits and save candidates money.”
Take nothing away from Russia who confounded all the so-called experts who said they had lost vital ground after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s decision not to attend the final presentation and his much-publicised verbal attack on the corruption allegations against FIFA members.
It was, as it happened, a gamble that paid off and Putin, eager to milk his country’s upset victory, was flying into Zurich later this evening for an impromptu celebratory public appearance.
But in terms of the best bid winning, the 2018 vote only served to question, not for the first time, the integrity of FIFA’s inner sanctum and their reasons for making such far-reaching decisions.
Contact the writer of this story at zib.l1738774798labto1738774798ofdlr1738774798owedi1738774798sni@w1738774798ahsra1738774798w.wer1738774798dna1738774798
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