12 May 2011

FIFA says it wants evidence of corruption

10:41 am on 12 May 2011

Football's world governing body FIFA has asked England's Football Association and a newspaper to provide evidence of fresh allegations of corruption at the top of world football.

The secretary general of world football's governing body, Jerome Valcke, has sent a letter to the FA asking for a report from former England 2018 chairman Lord David Triesman.

In testimony to a parliamentary hearing in London Triesman named four FIFA executive committee members who had requested cash and a knighthood in exchange for their votes in the 2018 World Cup ballot.

Valacke also called on the Sunday Times newspaper to submit any other evidence it had especially on the Qatar bid.

FIFA presidential candidate and Asian football chief Mohamed Bin Hammam has denied allegations that Qatar paid bribes to secure the 2022 World Cup.

The same newspaper reported initial bribery allegations last October during the controversial campaign to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

That prompted a FIFA ethics inquiry which led to suspensions for two executive committee members, Reynald Temarii, Oceania's then football chief, and Nigeria's Amos Adamu, for breaches of its ethics code.