We can host World Cup, says London's mayor Boris Johnson

London mayor Boris Johnson said on Wednesday that London and England would be ready to take over hosting a World Cup if required.

 

Johnson was speaking a day after FIFA president Sepp Blatter announced he was standing down. Johnson was mayor three years ago when London hosted the summer Olympics and he said that the city would be ready to host matches if either of the tournaments in 2018 or 2022 were to be changed.

 

"Well, I think the sooner that Sepp Blatter steps down, the better. He's said he's going, he shouldn't stay upon the order of his going but go at once. And I think that we need to get on and find out if there's been corruption in the handling of both the competitions to host the World Cup and as I've said before, London is ready. If it turns out that the thing has been corrupted, this city did an outstanding job three years ago and we could easily do it again," said Johnson in London.

 

England, led by Prime Minister David Cameron, Prince William and David Beckham, had bid in 2010 to host the 2018 World Cup which was awarded to Russia and Johnson said that England would be happy to put its case again should the need arise.

 

"We tried very hard as you remember in 2010 to get the World Cup in England in 2018. I think we'd be only to happy to put our case again, it was a very powerful case, a very persuasive case, about the advantages to football of hosting the World Cup in England - huge revenues that could be used to promote football around the world, a football fanatical nation that we are, it would've been a great World Cup here, and it hasn't been here since 1966," he said.  — Reuters