Jordanian FIFA presidential candidate Prince Ali bin al-Hussein said that he "will not reopen the bidding processes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups if he wins control of world football," according to Owen Gibson of the GUARDIAN. The "controversial tournaments have been under constant scrutiny" since the vote in Dec. '10. Qatar has "come under pressure" for the way in which it won the race and over conditions for migrant workers building the infrastructure required to host the '22 tournament. Prince Ali said, "I think every country in the world has the right to host the World Cup. I’ve said that many times. That’s the key point. However we have to guarantee that major issues around human rights and labor laws are implemented." He said that he was "unconcerned" about the recent doping revelations in Russia as they relate to athletics but would "seek assurances" from Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko, if elected. Prince Ali: "We haven't seen anything to do with football, we are focused on football. Obviously within football doping is a very big concern. We have to tackle other issues including match-fixing" (GUARDIAN, 11/18). REUTERS' Mike Collett reported the Jordanian prince, "beaten in May's FIFA presidential election," said that "he can win the race to become president next." Prince Ali: "I am confident that I can win the election because I believe I have the best ideas for what the future of FIFA should be and I have full faith and confidence in our national associations. ... Under the terms of the election, unlike before, the electoral body has stipulated there can be no block voting by confederations." Among the "wielders of the block vote in the past" was the "now-disgraced" Jack Warner of CONCACAF, who "used to publicly state that all his 35 member states were voting for Blatter." Prince Ali: "That cannot happen now. All candidates have been given strict instructions on how the election should be run and the confederations cannot control the individual votes of their members" (REUTERS, 11/18).
SUSPICIOUS TRANSACTIONS: The AFP reported Swiss investigators examining World Cup corruption said that they are "looking into a growing list of suspicious financial transactions and want evidence from disgraced Qatari football powerbroker Mohamed bin Hammam." Switzerland's Office of the Attorney General said that there are now "more than 120 suspicious transactions linked to FIFA's decision to award the tournaments to Russia and Qatar five years ago." The figure is "up from 103 in August." On Qatar, the Swiss attorney's office confirmed that "there has been no contact yet with officials in Doha, almost seven months after their investigations began." The Swiss OAG spokesperson said, "So far, no Qatari officials have been questioned" (AFP, 11/19).
NO CONTACT: REUTERS' Simon Evans reported Russia's World Cup CEO Alexei Sorokin said on Thursday that Swiss and U.S. investigators looking into corruption in global football "have not been in contact with him." Sorokin said in an interview that "neither the relevant Swiss nor U.S. authorities had even been in touch with his committee." Sorokin said, "We have not been contacted by a single official, be it from Switzerland or the U.S. or from any other country." Sorokin added that Russia had "cooperated with FIFA's own investigation." But Sorokin said that he regarded the issue of "whether the World Cup might be taken away from Russia as over." Sorokin: "We are organizing the World Cup in Russia, whether someone has an attitude towards that or not. It will be in Russia in 2018" (REUTERS, 11/19).
