Post by Macmoish on Oct 28, 2010 7:22:29 GMT
Guardian/Own Gibson
Russian official slams England's 'absolutely primitive' World Cup bid
• Fifa to discuss separating 2018 and 2022 World Cup votes
• Governing body unable to act on latest comments
The bitterness over the 2018 World Cup intensified last night when one of the most senior figures in Russian football damned England's bid as "absolutely primitive" and the situation as "comical".
As Fifa's shell-shocked executive committee gathers today to discuss the possibility of postponing the vote for the 2022 tournament until a later date in the wake of corruption allegations, England's team was last night considering its response to the outburst from the honorary president of the Russian Football Union.
Senior England 2018 sources believe Vyacheslav Koloskov's intervention could be a ploy, designed to provoke them into a response that would itself fall foul of Fifa's rules forbidding bidders from commenting on their rivals. Because Koloskov, a former longstanding Uefa and Fifa executive committee member, is not a formal member of the bid team, he falls outside the rules, despite lobbying extensively on Russia's behalf.
The dispute exploded on Tuesday when, during a presentation by the Russian chief executive Alexei Sorokin in Zurich, it emerged England had submitted an official complaint to Fifa demanding an apology over his reported comments on London's crime rate and youth alcoholism.
Despite anger at what they saw as repeated attempts to undermine England's bid by making slurs and then blaming them on mistranslation or misconception, insiders insist they wanted the dispute to remain private. But Koloskov said the complaint was an admission that England were behind in the race to host the 2018 World Cup and they were rattled. He also referred to the recent Sunday Times investigation that has left Fifa battling to salvage its reputation.
"It's a comical situation. The English are afraid of how badly their bid is going. Their journalists are provoking members of the committee, and they now say one of the members of our bidding team has spoken out against England in an improper manner," he told the Russian website championat.ru. "I think it's a raising of tensions, and also an attempt to in some way influence the work of our bidding team."
Sorokin has maintained that his comments were misinterpreted, and that he was merely drawing attention to the tactics used by the English media to discredit the Russian bid. He was reported as saying: "It's no secret, for example, that in London they have the highest crime rate compared with other European cities, and the highest level of alcohol consumption among young people."
"These acts have little chance of success. Russia should not be afraid of sanctions. There won't even be an investigation," said Koloskov of England's complaint to Fifa, which said yesterday it had spoken to both sides. "The behaviour of the English is absolutely primitive. Instead of talking about their own excellence and merits, they try to put off their opponents."
Earlier, Sorokin said he had written to the England bid team to explain his actions but would not be apologising formally. "I just expressed my regret over the whole thing, it was just a misunderstanding," he said. "It wasn't a formal apology because I don't feel like I've broken any rules. All of us in the Russian bid team have a great deal of respect for our English colleagues and I'd like to think they respect us as well. I hope we can put this matter to rest for good now."
After Koloskov's intervention there now seems little chance of that, and England will have to decide whether to risk inflaming the situation further or accept Sorokin's clarification.
The Fifa executive committee will meet today, meanwhile, for the first time since two of its number, Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii, were provisionally suspended in the wake of the Sunday Times investigation that appeared to show them agreeing to accept money in return for their votes.
It is understood that one of the items on the agenda will be a recommendation to separate the votes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, postponing the latter until a later date. The plan would seek to remove the shadow of potential collusion between blocs of voters but will meet stiff opposition from some on the executive committee who believe it would unfairly punish the 2022 bidders.
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/oct/28/russia-england-world-cup-bid-primitive
Independent
Russians fuel 2018 crisis with 'primitive' slur
By Sam Wallace, Football Correspondent
The England 2018 World Cup bid team's relations with their biggest rivals Russia were at crisis point last night after the Russians accused the English of being "absolutely primitive" and refused to apologise for their slurs on London.
In an extraordinary attack on the English bid, after weeks of simmering tensions, the honorary president of the Russian football union, Viacheslav Koloskov, broke with all Fifa protocol to give voice to his country's frustrations with their rivals. In an interview with a Russian sports website he claimed that the English "were afraid of how badly their bid is going".
Koloskov, whose words were translated for the Press Association by an independent translator, said it was a "comical situation". He said: "English journalists are provoking members of the [Fifa executive] committee, and they now say one of the members of our bidding team has spoken out against England in an improper manner.
"I think it's a raising of tensions, and also an attempt to in some way influence the work of our bidding team. These acts have little chance of success. Russia should not be afraid of sanctions. There won't even be an investigation. The behaviour of the English is absolutely primitive. Instead of talking about their own merits, they try to put off their opponents."
His words came last night as the England 2018 delegation were considering their response to a statement from Alexei Sorokin, the general director of the Russian bid, in which he said he would not apologise for his outspoken criticism of London – criticism which is forbidden by the Fifa rules governing bidding nations.
The England team are now certain to complain about Koloskov, having already lodged a formal complaint to Fifa on Tuesday over highly critical remarks from Sorokin, a former Russian diplomat who served in Washington, about London. Yesterday Sorokin told Reuters he had sent a letter to the English 2018 bid that "expressed" his "regret" over what he described as a "misunderstanding" but stopped well short of the formal apology that was requested.
The England 2018 team had been given assurances by Fifa that the world governing body had spoken to the Russians and were confident that a full apology would be forthcoming. The latest outburst from Koloskov suggests that the Russians have no intention of apologising.
Last night the England 2018 chief executive, Andy Anson, and international president, David Dein, were still in Zurich in meetings while chief of staff Simon Greenberg was in London. The three were deciding on a response to the latest move from the Russians which would have to be agreed by the chairman, Geoff Thompson, a member of Fifa's executive committee (ExCo).
The latest provocative move from the Russians has raised temperatures considerably in the 2018 bidding contest, the result of which will be announced by Fifa on 2 December. Having requested an apology on the Sorokin remarks, the English bid team will not be able to back off over Koloskov.
The comments from Sorokin that are at the centre of the original complaint by the English bid come from an interview with the Sport Express newspaper in Russia in which he said that London had the "highest crime rate compared with other European cities, and the highest level of alcohol consumption among young people".
While the English bid are bemused at the Russians' constant attempts to undermine them, the Russians cannot understand why they come in for so much criticism from the British media. The spat has been played out against the backdrop of a crisis at Fifa in the wake of The Sunday Times investigation that caught two Fifa ExCo members allegedly offering their vote in exchange for cash for football projects.
Yesterday one former ExCo member said that the decision on who is awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals should be put back from 2 December while Fifa's ethics committee completes its investigation into the allegations against Amos Adamu of Nigeria and Tahiti's Reynald Temarii.
Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, who was the head of the German FA when his country bid successfully for the 2006 tournament, said the decision should be delayed for four weeks. "The awarding [of the two World Cups] should be postponed until the question is cleared up, in a negative or a positive way."
www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/international/russians-fuel-2018-crisis-with-primitive-slur-2118275.html
Russian official slams England's 'absolutely primitive' World Cup bid
• Fifa to discuss separating 2018 and 2022 World Cup votes
• Governing body unable to act on latest comments
The bitterness over the 2018 World Cup intensified last night when one of the most senior figures in Russian football damned England's bid as "absolutely primitive" and the situation as "comical".
As Fifa's shell-shocked executive committee gathers today to discuss the possibility of postponing the vote for the 2022 tournament until a later date in the wake of corruption allegations, England's team was last night considering its response to the outburst from the honorary president of the Russian Football Union.
Senior England 2018 sources believe Vyacheslav Koloskov's intervention could be a ploy, designed to provoke them into a response that would itself fall foul of Fifa's rules forbidding bidders from commenting on their rivals. Because Koloskov, a former longstanding Uefa and Fifa executive committee member, is not a formal member of the bid team, he falls outside the rules, despite lobbying extensively on Russia's behalf.
The dispute exploded on Tuesday when, during a presentation by the Russian chief executive Alexei Sorokin in Zurich, it emerged England had submitted an official complaint to Fifa demanding an apology over his reported comments on London's crime rate and youth alcoholism.
Despite anger at what they saw as repeated attempts to undermine England's bid by making slurs and then blaming them on mistranslation or misconception, insiders insist they wanted the dispute to remain private. But Koloskov said the complaint was an admission that England were behind in the race to host the 2018 World Cup and they were rattled. He also referred to the recent Sunday Times investigation that has left Fifa battling to salvage its reputation.
"It's a comical situation. The English are afraid of how badly their bid is going. Their journalists are provoking members of the committee, and they now say one of the members of our bidding team has spoken out against England in an improper manner," he told the Russian website championat.ru. "I think it's a raising of tensions, and also an attempt to in some way influence the work of our bidding team."
Sorokin has maintained that his comments were misinterpreted, and that he was merely drawing attention to the tactics used by the English media to discredit the Russian bid. He was reported as saying: "It's no secret, for example, that in London they have the highest crime rate compared with other European cities, and the highest level of alcohol consumption among young people."
"These acts have little chance of success. Russia should not be afraid of sanctions. There won't even be an investigation," said Koloskov of England's complaint to Fifa, which said yesterday it had spoken to both sides. "The behaviour of the English is absolutely primitive. Instead of talking about their own excellence and merits, they try to put off their opponents."
Earlier, Sorokin said he had written to the England bid team to explain his actions but would not be apologising formally. "I just expressed my regret over the whole thing, it was just a misunderstanding," he said. "It wasn't a formal apology because I don't feel like I've broken any rules. All of us in the Russian bid team have a great deal of respect for our English colleagues and I'd like to think they respect us as well. I hope we can put this matter to rest for good now."
After Koloskov's intervention there now seems little chance of that, and England will have to decide whether to risk inflaming the situation further or accept Sorokin's clarification.
The Fifa executive committee will meet today, meanwhile, for the first time since two of its number, Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii, were provisionally suspended in the wake of the Sunday Times investigation that appeared to show them agreeing to accept money in return for their votes.
It is understood that one of the items on the agenda will be a recommendation to separate the votes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, postponing the latter until a later date. The plan would seek to remove the shadow of potential collusion between blocs of voters but will meet stiff opposition from some on the executive committee who believe it would unfairly punish the 2022 bidders.
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/oct/28/russia-england-world-cup-bid-primitive
Independent
Russians fuel 2018 crisis with 'primitive' slur
By Sam Wallace, Football Correspondent
The England 2018 World Cup bid team's relations with their biggest rivals Russia were at crisis point last night after the Russians accused the English of being "absolutely primitive" and refused to apologise for their slurs on London.
In an extraordinary attack on the English bid, after weeks of simmering tensions, the honorary president of the Russian football union, Viacheslav Koloskov, broke with all Fifa protocol to give voice to his country's frustrations with their rivals. In an interview with a Russian sports website he claimed that the English "were afraid of how badly their bid is going".
Koloskov, whose words were translated for the Press Association by an independent translator, said it was a "comical situation". He said: "English journalists are provoking members of the [Fifa executive] committee, and they now say one of the members of our bidding team has spoken out against England in an improper manner.
"I think it's a raising of tensions, and also an attempt to in some way influence the work of our bidding team. These acts have little chance of success. Russia should not be afraid of sanctions. There won't even be an investigation. The behaviour of the English is absolutely primitive. Instead of talking about their own merits, they try to put off their opponents."
His words came last night as the England 2018 delegation were considering their response to a statement from Alexei Sorokin, the general director of the Russian bid, in which he said he would not apologise for his outspoken criticism of London – criticism which is forbidden by the Fifa rules governing bidding nations.
The England team are now certain to complain about Koloskov, having already lodged a formal complaint to Fifa on Tuesday over highly critical remarks from Sorokin, a former Russian diplomat who served in Washington, about London. Yesterday Sorokin told Reuters he had sent a letter to the English 2018 bid that "expressed" his "regret" over what he described as a "misunderstanding" but stopped well short of the formal apology that was requested.
The England 2018 team had been given assurances by Fifa that the world governing body had spoken to the Russians and were confident that a full apology would be forthcoming. The latest outburst from Koloskov suggests that the Russians have no intention of apologising.
Last night the England 2018 chief executive, Andy Anson, and international president, David Dein, were still in Zurich in meetings while chief of staff Simon Greenberg was in London. The three were deciding on a response to the latest move from the Russians which would have to be agreed by the chairman, Geoff Thompson, a member of Fifa's executive committee (ExCo).
The latest provocative move from the Russians has raised temperatures considerably in the 2018 bidding contest, the result of which will be announced by Fifa on 2 December. Having requested an apology on the Sorokin remarks, the English bid team will not be able to back off over Koloskov.
The comments from Sorokin that are at the centre of the original complaint by the English bid come from an interview with the Sport Express newspaper in Russia in which he said that London had the "highest crime rate compared with other European cities, and the highest level of alcohol consumption among young people".
While the English bid are bemused at the Russians' constant attempts to undermine them, the Russians cannot understand why they come in for so much criticism from the British media. The spat has been played out against the backdrop of a crisis at Fifa in the wake of The Sunday Times investigation that caught two Fifa ExCo members allegedly offering their vote in exchange for cash for football projects.
Yesterday one former ExCo member said that the decision on who is awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals should be put back from 2 December while Fifa's ethics committee completes its investigation into the allegations against Amos Adamu of Nigeria and Tahiti's Reynald Temarii.
Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, who was the head of the German FA when his country bid successfully for the 2006 tournament, said the decision should be delayed for four weeks. "The awarding [of the two World Cups] should be postponed until the question is cleared up, in a negative or a positive way."
www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/international/russians-fuel-2018-crisis-with-primitive-slur-2118275.html