Handbag gifts defended

Bid team confirm buying luxury gifts

Last updated: 22nd October 2009   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Handbag gifts defended

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England's 2018 bid team have defended their decision to give designer handbags to the wives of members of Fifa's executive committee.

It has been revealed that England's bid team for the 2018 World Cup bought the wives of members of Fifa's executive committee, who will vote on the World Cup venue, luxury handbags as a gift.

The news raises questions about the integrity of the bidding process, but the England bid team maintain they have done nothing wrong

Sky Sports News' chief news reporter Bryan Swanson says the bid team believe they have acted strictly within guidelines after sending the English-manufactured Mulberry handbags at a cost of £230 a bag to the wives.

A spokesman said, in a statement to Sky Sports News, "FIFA have a set of guidelines for all bidders which includes direction on what constitutes an acceptable campaign gift. All our gifts are carefully chosen so as to be in the spirit and the letter of the law."

England's 2018 campaign was dealt a blow by Fifa vice-president Jack Warner when, on a recent trip to London, he criticised their campaign.

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