By Duncan Mackay
November 27 – Jack Warner, the FIFA vice-president, has met the British and Australian Prime Ministers Gordon Brown (pictured) and Kevin Rudd to discuss the countries respective bids to host the World Cup in 2018 or 2022.
Both Brown and Rudd are visiting Port-of-Spain for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).
Brown spent 20 minutes with Warner talking about England’s bid during , what Downing Street officials claimed, was a positive meeting.
Brown had specifically requested that he wanted to meet Warner during his trip to the Caribbean, a request warmly received by the FIFA member, who has been the most fierce critic of England’s bid to state the World Cup.
Warner said: ”There was a meeting and it was a very good meeting.
“What Mr Brown said was very well received by me.
“He made a very good case for England - in fact, the best case I have heard from anyone since this bid started.
“It was a very, very nice meeting and I hope that this new trust isn’t just something passing.
“I hope it is something that can be sustained for a long time.”
Warner, an MP in Trinidad, did not appear to repeat to Brown any of the criticisms he made last month about England’s bid being “lightweight”.
The role of Lord Triesman, the leader of the England 2018 bid, was not discussed.
Instead, Downing Street claimed, Warner praised England for having some of the best facilities in the world and being a country that could stage the World Cup tomorrow.
A spokesman for Brown said: “The meeting between Gordon Brown and Jack Warner was very positive.
“Mr Warner was complimentary about England’s sporting infrastructure and said he recognised that England would be ready to host the World Cup tomorrow.
“If it were held tomorrow he recognised England would be ready.”
Brown, a keen football fan who has supported been behind the bid for the World Cup since it was first mooted, must have impressed Warner with his knowledge of the sport.
The the two also share a mutual friend in Marvin Andrews, a Trinidad international who plays for Raith Rovers, the club the Prime Minister supports.
The spokesman: “The Prime Minister re-emphasised his personal passion and the nation’s passion for football and sport more generally and underlined the Government’s commitment to sport, saying that sports in schools would be going from two hours a week at present to five hours a week in 2012.”
Brown also emphasised that by the time of the 2018 World Cup it will have been more than half-a-century since the tournament was staged in the country.
Besides his criticism of the leadership, Warner also damaged England’s bid when he announced that his wife had returned a £230 Mulberry handbag given by the 2018 bid team when they attended the Leaders in Football conference in London in October.
Warner said: ”I think that the Prime Minister is much better and more serious than to be talking about handbags.
“That subject is behind us.
“What is important for the English bid in my humble view is that they have to use these great figureheads that they have like the Prime Minister, the Queen, David Beckham.
“The whole world knows about England’s passion for football and that the Premier League is the best in the world, but these things tell you a country is really serious.
“I am not saying whether I will vote for England.
“What I will say is that this is a step in the right direction.”
Warner said that the handbags incident had not been discussed at the meeting.”
Rudd (pictured) met Warner less than an hour after arriving in Trinidad.
During discussions Warner inquired from Rudd about the development of the football in Australia.
Rudd responded “from strength to strength”, and went on to add that FIFA must look at ways to expand the world globally and it is in this regard Australia may hold the key.
Rudd said: ”We must look at innovative ways to grow the game and what better way to do it that in a region which is exploding.”
Warner warned Rudd that the World Cup bid is not only about figures, but it is about a host nation’s social responsibility, its commitment to the world.
Rudd said: ”Australia is looking to expand its diplomatic footprint in the globe and we are using sport as a mechanism to do this.”
Warner commended the Australian Prime Minister on his commitment to the 2018 bid.
He said: ”Mr. Prime Minister, I am impressed by your commitment and involvement in this process.
“Your country has demonstrated your ability to host World Class events in the past.”
Rudd thanked Warner for his compliment and said: ”We have a strong bid and it will only get stronger.”
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