Last-ditch lobbying for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups cranked into overdrive Wednesday as Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin launched a scathing attack on England's bid on the eve of the vote. The five countries battling for the 2022 football extravaganza - Australia, the United States, South Korea, Japan and Qatar - showcased their bids one last time to voters at FIFA headquarters in Zurich.
Meanwhile, high-powered delegations from the countries slugging it out for the 2018 tournament were engaging in frenzied lobbying with the climax to the scandal-tainted vote looming less than 24 hours away. But in a dramatic development, Russian leader Putin appeared to accuse England of orchestrating a "smear campaign" against FIFA voters which were part of a concerted effort to tilt the playing field. "I would like to note that recently we have watched with disappointment as an obvious campaign was being unleashed against members of the FIFA executive committee," Putin said as he announced he would not travel to Zurich.
"They are being smeared in dirt and compromised. ... I interpret this as (a method of) unfair competition. "We believe that such methods of competition are entirely unacceptable," he added, without specifically naming any of Russia's rivals. Putin's comments were a clear reference to recent British media reports which have accused several members of the 22-strong FIFA executive committee of corruption in the weeks leading up to the vote. English bid officials have repeatedly sought to distance themselves from the reports, and attacked the BBC as "unpatriotic" for its decision to broadcast a critical documentary earlier this week. Russia has emerged as the bookmakers favourite for 2018, edging ahead of England and a joint bid from Spain and Portugal. A Dutch-Belgian bid is regarded as the long-odds outsider.
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