Special Announcement: FIFA Clears Qatar on World Cup Related Allegations

November 13, 2014 – The FIFA Ethics Committee released today a summary report of its two-year investigation into the conduct of the national organizations bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup, exonerating Qatar and the other bidders of wrong-doing and finding no meaningful evidence of corruption in the December 2010 vote that awarded Qatar the right to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup™.The summary report, delivered by FIFA Adjudicatory Chamber Chairman, Hans-Joachim Eckert, puts to rest years of allegation and media speculation that Qatar improperly bought influence ahead of the historic vote to award the Middle East with its first soccer World Cup. It also appears to dismiss any likelihood that the 2018 and 2022 decisions will be rescinded and re-voted, something that Qatar’s critics were strongly advocating.The report and the investigation did raise concerns with some of the conduct of all the national bidding organizations, and suggests that some individual Executive Committee members will be censured for their behavior.  Nonetheless, the committee found that none of the potential problems “compromised the integrity of the FIFA World Cup™ 2018/22 bidding process as whole.”Indeed, the report singled out Qatar for its forthrightness and cooperation with the investigation, conducted by former US Attorney Michael J. Garcia.  According to the report, “The Qatar 2022 bid team provided full and valuable cooperation in establishing the relevant facts and circumstances. Witnesses were made available for interviews, documents were produced and follow-up requests were accommodated.”In contrast to Qatar, the report significantly criticized the bid tactics of the English organization, for its deep contacts with former Executive Committee member Jack Warner.  England and the United Kingdom, where many of the anti-Qatari media allegations originated, was one of the harshest critics of the Qatari bid.US-Qatar Business Council (USQBC) President and Executive Director, Ambassador Patrick Theros, issued the following statement following the release of the summary report, “FIFA’s findings dismissing the allegations against Qatar relieve all of us who have known from the beginning that Qatar conducted one of the most innovative, transparent and successful World Cup bids in history.  Mr. Garcia’s investigation was thorough and fair, and as a result we hope the entire world can now move forward in solidarity with Qatar to help it deliver an historic Cup.”“This is not an ordinary World Cup,” Ambassador Theros said.  “Qatar 2022 will be the most advanced, greenest and most spectator friendly Cup in history, with fans being able to see multiple matches in the same day.  Most importantly, it will be the first Middle Eastern World Cup, giving this region its long over-due opportunity to shine on the world stage.“The USQBC is proud that its member companies, including CH2MHill, AECOM, Fluor and many others are partnering with the State of Qatar to deliver this historic event.”