FIFA vice-president Jack Warner, alleged of fresh corruption allegations by former FA chief Lord Triesman this week, has poured further scorn on the sensational allegations that he asked for money to build an education centre in Trinidad in exchange for supporting England’s 2018 World Cup bid.

Warner was named by former England bid chairman Triesman as one of four Executive Committee members who asked for sweeteners during the bid process campaign.

Warner issued a strongly-worded denial, hitting back at Triesman by questioning his own credibility, initially stating: “I have no intention of dignifying that piece of nonsense of Triesman who no doubt feels that he can revive his dying political career by mentioning that piece of foolishness.

“I have never asked Triesman nor any other person, Englishman or otherwise, for any money for my vote at any time. 

“In the English World Cup campaign, before he was unceremoniously kicked out, I have spoken to Triesman, on his initiative, only on three occasions, while I have spoken to his other colleagues on other occasions and not one of his colleagues will ever corroborate his bit of trivia.

“I have been in FIFA for 29 years and this will astound many I am sure including persons like [other England 2018 members] David Dein and Geoff Thompson. 

“This is the last I intend to say on the matter.”

However, in a report published in Trinidad today, Warner went on to throw the book at the way England conducted its 2018 campaign, adding: “I laugh like hell because it took those guys from December to now [to know] that I have £2.5m (US$4.1m). 

“I never asked anybody for anything. When these guys came here [in September 2010], they promised to help. I took them to Longdenville, I showed them a place where they can put a playground. They promised to come back but they never did. That’s all.”

Despite getting his facts wrong in terms of how much England spent on their bid, Warner accused England, who only received two votes, of sour grapes, saying: “What is painful is that the FA spent £19m ($31m) in a bid, 24 persons in the FIFA (incorrect as only 22 were allowed to vote), one is from England, seven [others] of whom from Europe. 

“How come not even one person from Europe voted for them? And they’re looking for all different reasons. Why don’t they, in a dispassionate way, sit down and ask why not one European voted for them?”

“The important thing is that I think nobody of substance really takes those guys seriously,” Warner continued.

“Triesman was unceremoniously removed. Where is his credibility? At the end of the day, I hold my head tall because I can stand up and tell the world I never accepted anything. People who know me would be totally dismissive of that nonsense.”

In his scathing tirade, Warner made another mistake, saying that Triesman had claimed that Brazilian Ricardo Teixeira had asked for a knighthood, when actually Paraguayan Nicolas Leoz faced that accusation.

“He [Triesman] said that Ricardo Teixeira asked him for a knighthood but Brazil does not have a single knight, so why should Teixeira ask him to be called Sir Ricardo Teixeira, in Brazil? This is the kind of foolishness you have to understand and bear and what is for me painful.”

Meanwhile, FIFA presidential challenger Mohamed Bin Hammam, who desperately needs Warner’s support in his campaign, defended the Trinidadian CONCACAF President, claiming: “You need, and I need, and the court needs the evidence.

“The evidence is very important. When you come with accusations bring the evidence.”

English League One club Tranmere Rovers are close to announcing new owners, according to current chairman Peter Johnson.

The team has been searching for someone to assume control from the 74-year-old, who claims Rovers need new investment to take them forward.

Johnson is satisfied he has now found the perfect buyer and, barring a late hitch, expects the formalities to be completed swiftly.

“I had to find somebody who loves the club and who the fans can trust,” he said in an interview with BBC Late Kick Off.

“I think I’ve done that now. We expect to make an announcement fairly soon – in a couple of weeks.

“There’s many a slip twixt cup and lip and you never know until the ink’s dry. (But) I’m quite confident that it’s happening.”

Last month Michael Wilde, the former chairman of Southampton, pulled out of the running with a bid which would have seen ex-Chelsea defender Albert Ferrer installed as the club’s new manager.

The Tranmere Rovers Trust also launched a campaign to try and buy the club themselves but are unlikely to raise the funds needed, according to Johnson.

“It does need money, unfortunately it needs a lot of money,” he added.

“We’re one of the poorer clubs and our wage bill is quite low compared to some of the clubs in both our division and the division below.

“They (the prospective new owner) are a bit younger than I am. They’ve got the money and I’m satisfied the fans will be able to trust them.”

Super Rugby club Crusaders and Canterbury Rugby have appointed Doug McSweeney as Marketing Manager for both organisations.

Mr McSweeney comes from a background of ten years in sports management and marketing roles, cure most recently as the Marketing Manager for the Highlanders and Otago Rugby.  With his education and much of his early career having been based in Christchurch and on the West Coast, price Mr McSweeney says he is looking forward to returning to “Crusaders country” and contributing to the rugby scene here.

“I have a passion for sports marketing and have been involved as a player and administrator for the last fifteen years, anabolics starting in cricket, then golf and now rugby.  Canterbury Rugby and the Crusaders are both incredibly successful teams and organisations that have a reputation for leading the way both on the field and off it.  I am excited about joining these teams and making a positive contribution to their future success,” Mr McSweeney said.

Prior to joining Otago Rugby and the Highlanders, Mr McSweeney worked as the General Manager for Canterbury Golf Incorporated, and as the Marketing and Commercial Manager for the Canterbury Cricket Association prior to that.

“Doug brings a wealth of experience to this role,” Mr Riach said.  “We are really looking forward to welcoming him and we know he will be a valuable addition to both the Canterbury Rugby and Crusaders management teams.”

Mr McSweeney is replacing Amanda Carmichael as Crusaders and Canterbury Rugby Marketing Manager and starts on 11 November 2013.

The Canadian bid team hoping to host the FEI World Equestrian Games in 2018, medic will present to the FEI Evaluation Commission next month as part of the bid process prior to a final decision on the host city in June.

Canada has nominated Bromont, price pills which staged the equestrian events for the 1976 Olympic Games, as the venue for 2018.

The bid committee, which is expected to include the Mayor of Bromont, Pauline Quinlan, and Equine Canada President Mike Gallagher, will travel to FEI Headquarters in Lausanne (SUI) on 26-27 February for meetings with the Evaluation Commission.

A five-strong FEI delegation, representing the Federation’s sports, veterinary, commercial and financial departments, conducted a site visit of the Bromont venue at the end of November last year.

Following the Bromont presentation on 27 February, the FEI Evaluation Commission will produce a report for the Bureau. The Bromont bid team will then return to Lausanne for the in-person Bureau meeting in June and will make a formal presentation, prior to the Bureau vote that will decide the allocation of the FEI World Equestrian Games 2018.

The FEI confirmed this week that no signed host agreement had been received from the Austrians before the December 2012 deadline, meaning that Vienna is no longer in the running to host the FEI World Equestrian Games 2018.

“It is of course disappointing to have lost Vienna as one of our bid cities for the FEI World Equestrian Games in 2018,” said FEI Secretary General Ingmar De Vos, “but we are very much looking forward to seeing the presentation from Bromont when the Canadians come to FEI Headquarters in Lausanne at the end of next month to present their bid book to the FEI Evaluation Commission.”

The Presidents of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have signed on the dotted line ensuring that the Paralympic Games are held in the same city as the Olympic Games until 2020.

The two presidents extended the current cooperation agreement, which means the PyeongChang 2018 Games and the 2020 Games, to be held in either Istanbul, Madrid or Tokyo, are held in the same city.

The IOC and IPC have also signed a new partnership where they identified new IOC programs and activities in which the IPC could participate, including IF development and knowledge transfer.

IOC President Jacques Rogge said, “I’m delighted to extend our close cooperation with the IPC through to 2020. They have a fundamentally important role in the Olympic movement and we are pleased to continue to support the partnership”.

Sir Phillip Craven, IPC President said, “this is excellent news for the Paralympic Movement, especially coming so close to the start of the biggest ever Paralympic Games in London.

“The agreements secure the continued growth of the Movement and our members. Since 1988 we have benefitted from using the same venues, infrastructure and levels of detailed planning as the Olympic Games and through this agreement it will continue through to at least 2020.”

Telecoms giant BT has announced that it has completed the first phase of the development of its unified communications (UC) system at London 2012 Olympic Games sites.

Based on Cisco’s Hosted Unified Communications solutions, the system, which may have required the installation of computer cables and data splitters, will play a pivotal role in the operations of the Games.

Once all stages of the rollout have been completed, a total of 94 venues will be serviced by the system, but at the moment, 24 different Olympic venues are connected.

Stuart Hill, vice-president for central government and London 2012 at BT, commented: “Our hosted voice services are perfect for London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games because they provide the ability to grow quickly.”

Recently, BT announced that a “super spade” was being used to speed up the rollout of its fibre optic network to homes and businesses across the UK by reducing the installation time from one week to two days.

Secretary General of world soccer’s governing body, FIFA, Jérôme Valcke sent a letter to The Football Association (FA) Chairman David Bernstein yesterday, May 11, in which he requested a complete report from Lord David Triesman on the statements that he made yesterday in front of the House of Commons, as well as any and all documentary evidence at his disposal in relation to those statements.

Triesman spoke at a parliamentary inquiry on Tuesday, May 10, claiming that FIFA members Jack Warner, Nicolas Leoz, Ricardo Teixeira and Worawi Makudi had all requested bribes in one form or another, to ensure that the England 2018 World Cup bid secured their backing.

Valcke also sent a letter to The Sunday Times to ask the newspaper to provide FIFA with any piece of evidence with regard to the statements made to MP John Whittingdale.

Valcke expressed the extreme concern of FIFA and the FIFA President Sepp Blatter in his letter, at the latest allegations questioning the integrity of some FIFA Executive Committee members in connection with the bidding procedure for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups.

The Secretary General added that to be in a position to examine the situation thoroughly and with clear-sightedness, FIFA  required the FA to submit a complete report from Lord David Triesman, by means of which the latter would relate his declarations fully and provide any and all documentary evidence at his disposal.

Valcke also asked the FA to assist in providing FIFA with the parliamentary records/report in connection with the statements and testimonies made by Lord David Triesman at the House of Commons.

According to the Telegraph, Valcke’s letter read: “There is no need to express our extreme concern regarding the latest allegations questioning the integrity of some FIFA Executive Committee members made recently by Lord David Triesman…here, dear chairman, we need your help.

“For us to be in a position to examine the situation thoroughly, and with clear sightedness, we kindly solicit you to remit us a complete report [from] Lord Triesman [together with] any or all documentary evidence at his disposal. We wish to underline the utmost urgency and extreme sensitivity of the matter.”

Meanwhile, in the letter to The Sunday Times, FIFA refers to a previous exchange of correspondence by means of which FIFA understood that The Sunday Times had already provided the body with all of the evidence and documentation at its disposal.

The newspaper had reported that Issa Hayatou, FIFA vice-president, and Jacques Anouma from the Ivory Coast received US$1.5m between them to vote for Qatar’s 2022 bid.

Nevertheless, FIFA asked the English newspaper to submit any other piece of evidence that it may be in possession of and which has not yet been sent to FIFA as soon as possible.

In particular, reference is made in the letter to the allegations regarding a “whistleblower who had worked with the Qatar bid”, who allegedly made some declarations regarding the matter in question.

Chair of the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC), which awarded preferred bidder status for English Premier League soccer club West Ham to inherit the Olympic Stadium, Baroness Margaret Ford has warned it is inconceivable for League One side Leyton Orient to be allowed to move to Eton Manor after the London 2012 Games.

Barry Hearn, chairman of the English third-tier soccer side, has threatened legal action over West Ham’s proposed move, which was recommended, and has since been ratified by the Government and the Mayor of London.

He believes that the Premier League club’s move to the nearby venue could cost his League One club up to US$2.4m a year by attracting fans of his club to brighter lights of elite league action, with Orient being the closest club to the Olympic Park.

But Hearn has suggested he will drop his threat of legal action if the authorities help Orient build a new 15,000-seater stadium at nearby Eton Manor on the Olympic Park, currently being redeveloped and due to host three temporary swimming training pools for aquatics during the Olympics and then wheelchair tennis during the Paralympics.

The Eton Manor facilities, run by the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, will be able to accommodate elite hockey events for up to 15,000 spectators, and while Lee Valley will have the definitive say on what happens at Eton Manor after London 2012, Ford is fully against the move.

Ford told the London Assembly: “I actually think that is inconceivable that you put two football stadia in the Olympic Park.

“I mean, this is much-needed recreational, employment and housing space for the area of East London.

“I made that point to the chairman of Leyton Orient when we wrote to him recently.

“This isn’t land that is up for grabs that is not earmarked for anything else.

“It is very clearly earmarked in the master plan for specific legacy purposes set out long ago.”

Hearn strongly favours a move to Eton Manor – he feels a financial settlement for Leyton Orient will not guarantee the survival of the club as young fans will slowly divert to West Ham.

Hearn stated earlier in the month: “To compete we would have to move out of the area completely or be housed in the Olympic Park itself.

“That way we could have the same facilities and transport links that West Ham would have and then there would be a level playing field for us to compete on.

“There are options such as moving into the hockey stadium or building a new venue at Eton Manor playing fields.

“These are real suggestions we are looking at to resolve this issue.”