FIFA postpones start of bidding for 2026 World Cup
World football’s governing body has suspended the bidding process for the 2026 World Cup amid a widening bribery scandal that has implicated prior bid contests.
FIFA’s media office confirmed to swissinfo.ch that “further decisions regarding the 2026 FIFA World Cup bidding process will be discussed by the FIFA executive committee at a later date”.
Earlier Wednesday, FIFA’s secretary general, Jerome Valcke, told reporters in Russia , that it makes no sense to begin the bidding for the 2026 tournament given the widening corruption scandal that has implicated previous bid contests.
“Due to the situation, I think it’s nonsense to start any bidding process for the time being. It will be postponed,” Valcke told reporters in the southern city of Samara.
FIFA also handed over computer data to Swiss prosecutors as part of a criminal probe that reportedly included evidence pertaining to the organisation’s beleaguered president, Sepp Blatter.
Valcke’s appearance at the news conference came a little more than a week after Blatter tendered his resignation. Blatter’s surprise move came just four days after he won re-election to a fifth term.
Days before the election, United States and Swiss authorities revealed they are investigating international football officials for suspected corruption. The scrutiny extends to how FIFA awarded World Cup hosting rights to Russia, which won the bidding for 2018, and to Qatar, which won the bidding for 2022.
Seven officials were arrested in Zurich last month prior to the start of FIFA’s presidential vote and annual congress. Late on Wednesday, one of those officials lodged an appeal with the federal criminal court contesting his extradition warrant.
A spokesperson from the justice ministry said that the official, who she could not name for privacy reasons, had requested to be freed from prison while he awaited extradition.
In February, FIFA announced it would extend airing licences to the television networks Fox and Telemundo for coverage of the 2026 event.
The nomination of a host for the 2026 World Cup had been expected to be made in Kuala Lumpur in 2017. Among the expected potential bidders were the United States, Canada, Mexico and some European nations.
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