FIFA official says England had best bid for 2018 World Cup

LONDON (Reuters) - England's failed bid to host the 2018 World Cup "was by far the strongest contender", FIFA official Harold Mayne-Nicholls was quoted as saying on Sunday.

"How could England have only got two votes? It was a big surprise," Mayne-Nicholls was quoted as saying in The Sunday Times.

Qatar denies discussing splitting 2022 games into thirds

DOHA, July 7 (Reuters) - Organisers of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar have denied that there have been discussions about splitting games into three 30-minute periods if temperatures in the stadiums become dangerously high for the players.

Qatar heat could change World Cup game format, says engineer

LONDON, July 6 (Reuters) - FIFA could allow matches at the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar to be played over three 30-minute periods if temperatures in the stadiums became dangerously high for the players, a senior stadium engineer told delegates at a conference on Wednesday.

Putin hails re-election of 'selfless' Blatter

MOSCOW (AFP) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin congratulated the controversial Sepp Blatter on his re-election as head of world football, predicting he would continue to work 'selflessly" for the game.
Putin, long seen as a close ally of the FIFA chief, championed Russia's successful bid for the 2018 World Cup where to the surprise of many it beat off a challenge from England.

Reconsider Qatar World Cup football- German chief

BERLIN (AFP) - The head of Germany's football federation, Theo Zwanziger, called on Wednesday for FIFA to re-examine the awarding of the 2022 World Cup to Qatar over bribery allegations.
"I think there is a significant degree of suspicion that one cannot just dismiss," Zwanziger told ZDF public television when asked about calls for the sport's world

German soccer boss wants Qatar World Cup reviewed

* Calls for review in light of corruption scandal
* FIFA should act against “cancerous tumour”
BERLIN, June 1 (Reuters) - The head of Germany’s soccer federation on Wednesday called for soccer’s governing body FIFA to re-examine the award of the 2022 World Cup to Qatar, following a corruption scandal.

German soccer boss sees no delay to FIFA election

BERLIN, June 1 (Reuters) - The head of Germany’s soccer federation, Theo Zwanziger, said on Wednesday he did not expect the re-election of FIFA President Sepp Blatter to be delayed and called for the governing body to re-examine the award of the 2022

Romario seeks allegations clarification from Teixeira

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 31 (Reuters) - Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) president Ricardo Teixeira has been asked by former striker Romario, now a member of congress, to clarify the FIFA corruption allegations made against him.
Romario, a World Cup winner with Brazil in 1994, wants Teixeira to explain why he was named in the alleged vote buying scandal to stage the World Cup finals.

Pressure mounts on FIFA over scandal; Blatter defiant

* Sponsors Coca-Cola and Adidas wary of game’s tarnished image
* Calls for reform heard worldwide
* FIFA’s Blatter defiant: “no crisis” in soccer
By Ossian Shine
SINGAPORE, May 31 (Reuters) - Two heavyweight sponsors turned up the heat on FIFA over a deepening corruption scandal while the world soccer body’s president, Sepp Blatter, refused to accept the game was in crisis.

Valcke says Qatar did not buy World Cup vote

ZURICH, May 30 (Reuters) - FIFA’s general secretary Jerome Valcke denied suggesting that Qatar had “bought” the rights to stage the 2022 World Cup finals in a statement on Monday.

Qatar denies any wrong-doing over 2022 World Cup bid

ZURICH, May 30 (Reuters) - Qatar denied on Monday any wrong-doing in its bid to stage the 2022 World Cup, after a leaked email from FIFA’s general secretary made the claim that it had “bought” hosting rights for the tournament.

Qatar's emir promises Obama World Cup tickets

The emir of Qatar assured Barack Obama of tickets to the World Cup even though the US president will be long out of office when the Gulf country hosts the event in 2022.Emir Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani met with Obama on Thursday at the White House to discuss a host of critical issues in the Middle East. Obama took a moment to put in a special request while congratulating the emir for getting to host football's biggest event.