Dutch, Belgians paid bribe for World Cup bid, report says

The Netherlands and Belgium in 2009 paid a lobbyist closely linked to a former FIFA vice president to help garner votes for its 2018 World Cup bid, a news report revealed on Saturday.

The combined bid to bring football’s world showcase to the Lowlands ultimately failed, but the payment to the Guinean votes broker, named as Amadou Diallo went through, the daily De Volkskrant said.

Diallo at the time was closely affiliated to ousted Asian football chief Mohammed Bin Hamman, who resigned amid controversy in 2012 from all positions in football before a decision giving him a life ban.

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“Diallo at the time was bin Hamman’s right-hand man. The payment therefore transgressed FIFA’s code of conduct,” the paper said. “The code explicitly states that people affiliated to FIFA managers were not allowed to receive money from bidding teams,” it added.

“Diallo received at least 10,000 euros from the Dutch-Belgian bidding team,” the paper said, based on documents in its possession. An unnamed member of FIFA’s ethics committee said it would investigate the claim “should new facts come to light.”

“If money has been paid without a proper explanation, it would indeed be suspicious,” the official told De Volkskrant. Diallo denied he ever received money for his services, De Volkskrant reported.

“I never saw a cent… Never, never, never,” the paper quoted him as saying. The Royal Dutch Football Federation (KNVB) on Saturday denied any wrongdoing in the bid, but added that it has opened a probe into documents surrounding the bid process.

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