Calls for FIFA election to be delayed

FIFA today faced calls to abandon next week's presidential election after two of football's most powerful figures were accused of handing over up to $40,000 in bribes to officials.

FIFA presidential candidate Mohamed Bin Hammam and vice-president Jack Warner have both been charged with bribery in the most serious corruption crisis to hit the world governing body.

The pair will face FIFA's ethics committee on Sunday where there is the prospect of long bans if the allegations - made by fellow executive committee member Chuck Blazer - are proved. Both have denied any wrongdoing.

Sepp Blatter and Bin Hammam were due to stand in the presidential election on Wednesday and the Qatari has declared the charge is a tactic by Blatter in an attempt to boost his chances. "If there is even the slightest justice in the world, these allegations will vanish in the wind. This move is little more than a tactic being used by those who have no confidence in their own ability to emerge successfully from the FIFA presidential election," said Bin Hammam.

Damian Collins, the MP who named two other FIFA members in Parliament as allegedly receiving bribes from Qatar's 2022 World Cup bid, said FIFA should abandon the election.

Collins said: "FIFA need to have a proper independent investigation and the timetable does not allow this to happen before next week.

"If Bin Hammam is suspended it would be unacceptable for the election to simply become a shoo-in for Sepp Blatter. There must be a new election with new candidates allowed to come forward."

Blazer, an American who is the general secretary of the CONCACAF federation of which Warner is president, has alleged that the violations of FIFA's code of ethics during a meeting organised by Bin Hammam and Warner for Caribbean Football Union (CFU) associations in Trinidad two weeks ago.

Two CFU officials, Debbie Minguell and Jason Sylvester, have also been charged. Minguell is assistant to the CFU's general secretary and Sylvester is the organisation's events co-ordinator.