Report says FFA was ‘well aware’ of attempts to buy the votes of decision-makers and other unethical conduct in failed bid

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Australia used taxpayers’ money to pay bribes in a failed $46m bid to host the 2022 World Cup, a long-awaited report into the bidding process says.



Australia broke bid and ethics rules, tried to buy votes of decision-makers and then cover up its attempts, and Football Federation Australia (FFA) was “well aware” of the conduct, the report says.

Summary findings of the exhaustive report by the ethics committee of the world governing body FIFA were released on Wednesday. But the author of the full report, US lawyer Michael Garcia, subsequently put out a statement saying the summary did not properly represent his findings.



The federal government tipped in almost $46m for Australia’s bid to host the 2022 World Cup, but Australia gained just one vote. Hosting rights were awarded to Qatar, which was cleared of serious wrong-doing according to the disputed summary.



Australia’s bid team tried to direct some of the government funds to essentially bribe decision-makers, the report said.



“The FFA was well aware of the ramifications such a pattern of conduct might imply,” said Joachim Eckert, the chairman of the ethics committee’s adjudicatory chamber, in his summary.



The FFA said it would contact the committee about the “next steps in the process” and review the report’s findings before further comment.



The report detailed “potentially problematic facts and circumstances” in Australia’s bid, but ruled they didn’t affect the integrity of the final vote.



The ethics committee found “a prima facie case” that two consultants to Australia’s bid violated bidding and ethics rules. The report identified connections between financial and other support for supposed ‘football development’ and the bidding process.

These included Australia donating money to the Oceania Football Confederation during the bid period.



“Australia’s acquiescence helped create the appearance that benefits were conferred in exchange for a vote, thus undermining the integrity of the bidding process,” Eckert said.



Facebook Twitter Pinterest A British MP who campaigns against corruption in world football says the report commissioned by Fifa is a whitewash

The FFA also made “certain payments” to the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf).



The payments appear to have been blended, in part, with personal funds of the then Concacaf president Jack Warner – at the time, a FIFA executive committee member who would ultimately vote on who hosted the cup. Warner later resigned after being charged by the governing body with taking bribes.



Australia’s 2022 bid team attempted to divert funds the federal government had set aside for existing development projects in Africa “towards initiatives in countries with ties to Fifa executive committee members with the intention to advance its bid to host”.



“The FFA was well aware of the ramifications such a patter of conduct might imply,” Eckert said.



“Nevertheless ... the Australia 2022 bid team appears to have reached the conclusion to provide financial support under the title ‘(football) development projects’ preferably in areas home to Fifa executive committee members.”