Former vice-president of FIFA, suspended for life in 2012, the businessman interests French justice in the context of his investigation into the controversial attribution of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
by Rémi Dupré
Qatari Mohamed Ben Hammam will attend the 2022 World Cup opening match on November 20, between “his” national team and Ecuador, in the Royal Lodge of Al Bayt Stadium of Al Al -Khor? It is unlikely that the billionaire and ex-president (2002-2011) influence the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), 73, a sort of shadow during the tournament organized in his country.
Reduced to silence both by the emir Tamim ben Hamad al Thani as by his father and predecessor Hamad since his life suspension in December 2012 by the International Football Federation (FIFA) for “conflicts of interest”, Mr. Ben Hammam says “MBH” is however the great architect of victory in the urns of the emirate, on December 2, 2010, during the award vote of the World Cup.
“without” MBH “, we can not write FIFA in Qatar, smiles Guido Tognoni, ex-advisor of the ex-president of FIFA (1998-2015), Sepp Blatter. Who other than him Could the World Cup have brought to Qatar? “
At the heart of the Myriad of Missation Affairs which rocked FIFA, of which it was vice-president, accused by the media across the Rhine of having favored the purchase of votes during the controversial allocation of the World Cup 2006 to Germany, “MBH” passes for the great corrupter and the shadow lobbyist par excellence.
“He did his duty and obeyed the emir”
Long ally and putative successor of Sepp Blatter, having a “current bank account” at FIFA for a time, according to an internal report consulted by Le Monde, “MBH” saw his career upset by the design of the ‘Emir Hamad ben Khalifa Al Thani, in 2008, to obtain the Grail: the organization by Qatar from the World Cup.
First opposed to this candidacy and skeptical about the chances of his country to prevail, Mr. Ben Hammam had to comply with the injunctions of his sovereign. Building in the breach opened by FIFA of the simultaneous allocation of the 2018 and 2022 editions of the World Cup, conducive to bargaining, he worked for almost two years to convince, by all means, his colleagues from the Executive Committee FIFA to vote for his country.
“He did his duty and obeyed the emir, comments Mr. Tognoni. The Qatar campaign in 2010 was unique and perfect: the Qataris, richer than the other candidates, used all diplomatic links, personal, economic. “MBH” had international links. It was more important than the Pope at the time. All members of the FIFA Executive Committee went on pilgrimage to speak to him. ” Wine, exchanges to vote with the countries candidates for the organization of the 2018 World Cup… “MBH” multiplies behind the scenes to try to seduce his colleagues.
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