Conclusions and recommendations
FIFA's role during the bidding process
1. It
is frustrating and disappointing that Lord Triesman did not see
fit to raise his allegations of corruption against four members
of FIFA's Executive Committee with FIFA when he first became aware
of them. We welcome the undertaking he gave us that he would now
raise his allegations with FIFA so that it could conduct an investigation.
(Paragraph 7)
2. The Committee was
appalled by the allegations of corruption made against members
of the FIFA Executive Committee during the course of its inquiry.
Although they have been challenged in other evidence, they are
sufficiently serious for FIFA to commission a full, urgent and
independent investigation, and for the outcome to be made public.
Instead, FIFA has given every impression of wishing to sweep all
allegations of misconduct under the carpet and of dismissing anyone
bringing allegations to them with an approach bordering on contempt.
(Paragraph 21)
3. The Committee agrees
with the conclusions of the FA independent review with regard
to the need for greater transparency at FIFA. We urge FIFA to
conduct a thorough review of its governance of bidding processes,
incorporating independent input to address systemic reform as
well as the conduct of individuals, taking heed of the example
set by the International Olympic Committee following allegations
of bribery and corruption relating to Salt Lake City's bid to
host the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. The record of Sepp Blatter
to date does not inspire confidence that this will occur. We look
to him now to fulfil the undertakings that he gave at the time
of his re-election to the Presidency. We urge the FA and other
national associations to ensure that he is held to account for
them. (Paragraph 22)
4. We find the decision
to drop the investigation following the resignation of Jack Warner
extraordinary and it suggests that nothing has changed. As a first
step towards restoring confidence we call upon FIFA to publish
the Ethics Committee report. (Paragraph 23)
The English Bid
5. We
agree with Mark Thompson that both the timing and content of the
Panorama programme shown on Monday 29 November into allegations
of FIFA corruption were amply justified by the public interest
in FIFA's governance and, more generally, in independent and impartial
journalism. (Paragraph 30)
6. As our predecessor
Committee concluded, bidding for international sporting events
will remain a hazardous business. However, England's bid team
appears to have lacked a number of the components of a successful
bid. Lessons did not appear to have been learned from previous
studies with regard to the composition and unity of the bid team,
and the messages it needed to project. More fundamentally, it
appears that the groundwork for a successful bid had not been
laid effectively with football's international bodies. (Paragraph
41)
7. We urge the FA
to conduct a review of the 2018 bid along the lines of its 2006
bid report. We recommend that the FA also review its longer term
strategy for engaging with FIFA and other international football
authorities with a view to increasing its influence, including
with regard to governance reform. The review should include an
assessment of the pros and cons of maintaining its representation
on the International Football Association Board and of reducing
its international development programme. (Paragraph 42)
8. We recommend that
the Government review its advice and its own actions on bidding
for international sporting events in the light of our Report and
any future FA report on the 2018 bid. The Government should consider,
in particular, its early announcement of the bid and whether sufficient
attention was given to evaluating the strengths and weaknesses
of the England bid both before the bid was declared and during
the bidding process. (Paragraph 43)
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