Mohamed Bin Hammam denies that England's bid to host the 2018 World Cup has been damaged.
Bin Hammam plays down impact of newspaper report
President of the Asian Football Confederation Mohamed Bin Hammam denies that England's bid to host the 2018 World Cup has been damaged by the recent cash-for-votes scandal.
A Sunday Times article claimed that Fifa executive committee members Amos Adamu, from Nigeria, and Tahiti's Reynald Temarii offered to sell their World Cup votes for funding towards different football projects.
Earlier in the month Adamu was suspended from all football-related activity for three years while Temarii was banned for one year, after an investigation by the governing body.
It has been suggested that England's bid to host the 2018 showpiece spectacle had been damaged by the newspaper report, despite Fifa finding the pair guilty.
But Bin Hammam, who has already declared he will back the bid from Spain/Portugal, does not think it will have a negative impact.
Asked if there was damage done, he told
Sky Sports News: "No I don't think so. I think there could be some negatives but the people of handling the bid are capable of repairing the damages, and I think there are no damages."
Fifa is set to vote on who will host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups on Thursday, with England competing with the Iberian bid and proposals from Russia and Holland/Belgium.
In terms of suspended duo Adamu and Temarii, Bin Hammam revealed they could possibly have their votes back.
"They could have their vote back, not necessarily Mr Temarii," he added.
"But I'm actually sorry to see them suspended. Me and other colleagues in the executive committee have accepted and agreed upon the decision from the ethics committee. We support it for the time being.
"I am sorry for them because the two people did a lot for football in their continents. I don't really know what went wrong.
"Fifa is not corrupt. People require Fifa to be more transparent.
"People trust Fifa and they want it to be more democratic and more ethical, this is a good sign."
