(ATR) Wary of the storm of controversy over the botched 2018 and 2022 World Cup contest, FIFA's ruling body will approve the 2026 bidding regulations next week, which are likely to favour a US bid.
The FIFA Executive Committee meets in Zurich on Monday and Tuesday, with "approval of bidding regulations" for the 2026 contest the ninth item on the agenda.
Sepp Blatter indicated last week that world football’s governing body may act to amend statutes to ensure that a confederation cannot bid for two World Cups after hosting the competition, which could make European FAs ineligible to pitch for the 2026 World Cup. Currently, the statutes only block continental bodies from staging consecutive World Cups.
After the controversy over awarding the 2022 tournament to Qatar - with the USA losing 14-8 in the final round of voting in December 2010 and the bribery scandals that followed in the fallout from the vote - FIFA may be keen to block a bid from Europe for the 2026 edition.
Since losing to the Gulf state, the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football has said it's time for one of its federations to host the 2026 competition. The USA has been made favorite to host the tournament, with Canada and Mexico also touted as possible bids.
Bids may also be allowed from Africa or South America.
FIFA has previously said it will vote on the 2026 World Cup host in May 2017.
Rather than a secret ballot of the FIFA ExCo – two officials were banned, leaving just 22 members to award Russia and Qatar the 2018 and 2022 World Cups – all 209 federations will get the chance to cast their vote this time around. That was a reform passed by FIFA following the farcical parallel 2018/2022 bidding race, which was riddled with cash-for-votes allegations and corruption claims.
An 18-month bidding probe was conducted by U.S. lawyer Michael Garcia. But he quit his FIFA investigator post in December claiming his report into allegations of corruption in the World Cup bidding races had been summarized erroneously by FIFA ethics adjudicatory chairman Hans-Joachim Eckert.
Valcke has since pledged to closely scrutinize the 2026 candidates in a bid to avoid any repeat of the corruption-plagued bidding contest that battered FIFA's image and was described as a "mistake" by Blatter.
Written by Mark Bisson
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