British opposition leader Ed Miliband called for a rerun of the vote to host the 2022 World Cup if The Sunday Times’s allegations are proved to be true — as Sony became the first sponsor to call for an investigation into the Fifa files exposé.
The Labour leader said The Sunday Times had revealed “startling evidence” that the decision to award Qatar the 2022 tournament “may have been corrupted”.
“If these allegations are verified, there will be an overwhelming case for the bidding process to be reopened immediately,” he said.
“It is high time for this organisation to embrace the principles of openness and fair play which makes the game it governs such a source of joy to so many.
“The ordinary fans who dig deep into their pockets to watch games need to know that the people running this sport are not lining their own.”
The Sunday Times published new allegations based on a leak of millions of secret documents.
Qatar were awarded the right to stage the 2022 World Cup in December 2010.
Last week the newspaper alleged that Qatar’s former Fifa Vice President Mohamed bin Hammam paid £3m to football officials around the world to help win support for Qatar in the run up to the World Cup vote in December 2010.
Now Bin Hammam is facing claims that he used his top level contacts in the Qatari royal family and government to arrange deals and favours to secure the tournament for his country.