Mohamed Bin Hammam is meeting with English FA chairman David Bernstein today, April 28, and has claimed that the British media has a responsibility to support efforts to build bridges between FIFA and British member associations.

Sepp Blatter’s FIFA Presidential Candidacy opponent said that while it was the body’s responsibility to take “the initial step to clear the air between itself and the British people” the move needed to be reciprocated not only by the four home nations “but also by the clubs, league, fans and media in Britain”.

With England’s bid to host the 2018 World Cup falling at the first hurdle, relations between the FA and FIFA are at an all-time low and Bin Hammam added: “Building the bridges between Britain and FIFA is not only the task of FIFA or the British associations.

“A gesture of goodwill between Britain and FIFA must be supported and embraced by all those who have issues and differences in opinions with the others.”

The FA are thought to be seriously considering backing the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president’s candidacy after England’s bid leaders and British media criticised FIFA and the 2018 bidding process following the country’s shock first-round elimination in the December 2 vote. 

FIFA were severely antagonised by the British media in the build-up to the vote when a Sunday Times investigation in October led to the banning of two FIFA Ex-Co members, one of whom was caught on film requesting bribes. 

This was followed shortly after by a BBC Panorama investigation, broadcast days before the vote, which named another three Ex-Co members as taking bribes from the collapsed sports marketing company, ISL. 

Bin Hammam was among those critical of the methods used by the Sunday Times reporters in the run-up to the vote and said that now the British media are among those who have a responsibility to get the FA’s relations with FIFA back on track.

The Qatari national added: “FIFA has to come forward and take the initial step to clear the air between itself and the British people. But I believe this has to be reciprocal, not just by the British associations but also by the clubs, league, fans and media in Britain.”

Steve Lawrence, the architect who wrote the original masterplan for the London Olympics and Paralympics, has written to the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, stating that he should not approve West Ham’s bid for sole use of the Stratford venue after the 2012 Games.

The architect has constantly stood by his view that West Ham should ground-share with Tottenham Hotspur at a revamped Olympic stadium – with the revenue being used to build an adjacent athletics venue to preserve the legacy.

Lawrence was commissioned by Stratford Development Partnership over 10 years ago, to carry out an alternative feasibility study for the Olympics. He proposed that any venue in Stratford should, after the Games, be shared by Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United as anchor tenants with the idea being rejected by local land-owners, who were fearful of rowdy fans.

Johnson, along with two UK government officials, are believed to be ready to ratify the decision to award West Ham the rights to the Olympic Stadium after the Premier League strugglers secured preferred bidder status from the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) last week.

However, Lawrence says that the solution is doomed and has urged Boris Johnson not to let it happen for fear of wasting public money, and instead to support the ground-share scheme he initially proposed.

Lawrence wrote to the Mayor, as well as the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, stating: “It is appalling that the original proposal for a shared use of the Olympic Stadium by Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham with the revenue stream being used
to fund a Centre for UK Athletics has not been considered appropriately.

“I wrote to your predecessor, Ken Livingstone, several times from 2000 on about this, your office has therefore been aware of the proposal for ten years.

“I cannot understand why this proposal has not been considered, it is far and away the most cost effective and in not considering it properly, your office is complicit in wasting vast sums of taxpayers and ratepayers money.

“I hope you will now set aside the OPLC recommendation which is highly flawed and instigate a more accountable analysis of proposals including the possibility of a shared use of the stadium.”

---

Related Discussion: West Ham Olympic Stadium Financing by Stephen Pearson

Mestalla stadium, home to La Liga club Valencia, has been revealed as the host of this season’s Copa del Rey final between Real Madrid and Barcelona in April.

The announcement was made by the Spanish Football Federation who also decided the kick off will be at 9.30pm local time.

The stadium was chosen to hold the final three years ago, the last time it was contested between Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Real thrashed city rivals Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals, while Barca overcame Real Sociedad.

Barca have won the cup a record 26 times, while Real have lifted the trophy 18 times.

The London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) has agreed to award iCITY sole preferred bidder status to become the long-term tenant of the Press and Broadcast Centres.

iCITY will now have an opportunity over several months to submit credible business plans to show it can deliver the Legacy Corporation’s aspirations for the Press and Broadcast Centre site.

iCITY aims to create a leading centre for technology, doctor design and research with the potential to generate more than 4,000 jobs. The digital hub would harness innovation and creativity in east London. The iCITY vision also has a community focus including a conference centre and a pedestrian square for broadcasting major sporting events, along with cafes, restaurants and bars.

The Legacy Corporation has set iCITY tough but achievable requirements that must be met before any agreement for lease is formally signed.

Gavin Poole, Chief Executive Officer of iCITY, said: “We are delighted that iCITY has been selected as Sole Preferred Bidder for the legacy use of the Press and Broadcast Centres on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. This is a unique opportunity to cement Britain’s position as a global leader in innovation and the creative industries.

“iCITY will provide a sustainable legacy for the local community through the creation of thousands of jobs, apprenticeships and training opportunities. The incredible track record of start-ups and entrepreneurs in east London is growing at an impressive rate, and this is a chance to provide additional connectivity, capacity, investment and highly advanced infrastructure. I am hugely excited that work can now begin on turning that vision into a reality.”

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “London couldn’t be in a better position to stage the best Games ever with everything ready to go and our legacy plans in great shape. With the future for six out of the eight Olympic Park facilities are already secured, it is now particularly encouraging to see on top of that a substantial bid for the Press and Broadcast Centres that we hope will act as a spring board for major job creation and new opportunities for local people.”

The Press and Broadcast Centres will house 20,000 journalists during the Games. Afterwards, the Broadcast Centre will offer 95,000 sq ft of office space over five floors and 575,000 sq ft of commercial space over two floors. The five storey Press Centre will provide around 317,000 sq ft of prime office space with the potential for retail uses on the ground floor.

Rumours suggested yesterday, unhealthy April 26, therapy that the president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) Suresh Kalmadi, arrested this week over corruption charges in his role as chairman of the Delhi Commonwealth Games, had been sacked from the post he has held since 1996.

However, reports in India from SportzPower claim that this is not the case and that interim presidency of IOA senior vice president Vijay Kumar Malhotra is legally challengeable and flawed.

Malhotra had stated: “The senior vice-president automatically takes over the duties when the President is not there. In the event of a prolonged absence…the senior vice-president eventually assumes charge.”

However, the President of the Archery Association of India, founder President of the Asian Archery Federation as well as the Commonwealth Archery Foundation, is legally unacceptable as he is over the limit of 70 years that has been set by the Indian government for anyone running a sports body.

In explaining why the meeting called by Malhotra to get himself declared interim president is illegal, a legal expert told SportzPower: “The fact is that Malhotra had convened a word of mouth meeting at his own residence, which is not the IOA office, and hence the meeting has no sanctity. 

“The second point is the categorisation of the meeting: was it a General Body Meeting or a Special General Meeting? Unless the meeting is categorised, it’s structure and quorum cannot be decided upon and hence the minutes of the meeting would show something patently illegal.

“Besides, if you look at the constitution of the IOA, a clear 15 days notice has to be given to convene a Special General Meeting, which has not been done.”

UK sports minister Hugh Robertson has given the green light to potential proposals from English soccer club West Ham to have retractable seating for the Olympic Stadium, provided it can fulfil its promise to athletics.

On Friday, February 11, a decision was made in unanimous fashion by the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) to award vital preferred bidder status to the East London club ahead of proposals from rival bidders Tottenham Hotspur.

The Premier League strugglers are now believed to be considering the possible seating solution to ensure the stadium is viable for soccer and athletics with Robertson stating that the proposal was “fair enough.”

As part of their bid to inherit the ground, West Ham promised that the athletics track would be kept in the stadium to enable the venue to be used for a variety of sports and concerts.

In an interview with BBC Radio Five’s Sportsweek, the Olympics minister claimed that he didn’t feel that the issue of the running track being upheld would cause problems to soccer fans at the stadium, and said West Ham could have retractable seating so long as they kept their promises to athletics.

He added: “People tend to think of a 1980s mixed-use stadium. This is a much more modern stadium, the sight lines are much better, the fans are much closer to centre spot than the outer seats at Wembley.

“Anybody who has stood in the middle of where the pitch will be will tell you that it looks much, much better. If West Ham want to bring in retractable seating and can still fulfil the promises they made to athletics then that’s fair enough.”

The OPLC’s backing backing does not mean that West Ham have been awarded the rights to move into the Olympic Stadium post 2012 just yet, but it would be highly unexpected if the decision was not ratified by two government departments and the mayor of London.

Robertson confirmed this matter by revealing that he had studied the papers produced by the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC), which selected West Ham as the preferred bidder over Tottenham on Friday, and said he had been satisfied the process had been done correctly.

He added: “There is a process to go through but West Ham are clearly in the lead. We want to make a formal announcement to Parliament but we know the clock is ticking and we want to get it done as quickly as possible.”