Sport secretary John Whittingdale pledges support to FA against FIFA

The UK government will do “all in its power to stand behind the FA” against Sepp Blatter and FIFA, according to the Secretary for Culture, Media and Sport, John Whittingdale.

And that includes the possibility of European and other countries from around the world boycotting the 2018 World Cup – and perhaps even organising an alternative.

FA chairman Greg Dyke, who has held extensive talks with Whittingdale, has not ruled out the possibility of a boycott and the Conservative MP backed Dyke by saying that “no option could be ruled out at this stage”.

Dyke will meet with the rest of UEFA this week to try to gather support for his cause, and Whittingdale admits they will need this support to extend beyond just Europe if such extreme action is to be taken.

Answering an urgent question granted to the shadow culture secretary Chris Bryant, Whittingdale said: “I have spoken to Greg Dyke about an alternative World Cup and whether UEFA is promoting this.

“One thing is clear; if there were any serious attempts to do that then they can only be done with strong agreement with other European nations and possibly others from around the world.

“This has to be discussed within UEFA, and I understand they meet later this week, and Greg Dyke will discuss such a matter with his colleagues. This is a matter for football to decide first. Mr Dyke is concentrating on finding allies around the world.

“As for a boycott of the 2018 World Cup by England alone; this would be self-defeating. It’s a tactic only effective with the support of a number of other countries. We will assess support for such a move and if it could be demonstrated that there was support for this then that could be effective in itself.”

Whittingdale condemned FIFA, which remains under criminal investigation by US and Swiss authorities, and its president Sepp Blatter, stating they had “failed to embrace overwhelming calls for change” and that “for the good of the game, Sepp Blatter has to go”.

He insisted that pressure must also be applied to FIFA’s sponsors, who could have a considerable part to play in any change in the governance of the world game.

“FIFA's sponsors need to think long and hard about whether they want to be associated with a disgraced organisation,” Whittingdale said.  

“If they are identified with corruption and sleaze, instead of the beautiful game, then they must consider carefully if they want to be associated with it.

"Visa have made a strong statement, and others have voiced their concern too - but we want them to go further.”