Qatar and Russia could no longer host the World Cup if bribery evidence is found
Russia and Qatar will not be allowed to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups if evidence is found that they offered bribes during the bidding process, a Fifa official has said.
Domenico Scala, head of Fifa's audit and compliance committee, told Swiss newspaper Sonntagszeitung: "If evidence should emerge that the awards to Qatar and Russia only came about thanks to bought votes, then the awards could be invalidated.”
The FBI is currently investigating allegations of bribery and corruption at Fifa, including how the two countries ended up being selected to host the next two World Cup tournaments. Both countries deny any wrongdoing, and Scala confirmed evidence had not yet been “brought forth”.
Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond told the BBC he supported Qatar holding the 2022 World Cup, but said he would work alongside another country if Fifa decided to reopen the bidding process. "We would offer our support to any country that has been chosen to host the World Cup," he said.
On Tuesday, former Fifa president Sepp Blatter announced he was resigning. Soon afterwards it emerged he was individually being investigated by US law enforcement.