Qatar may be stripped of the 2022 World Cup hosting, according to a former senior figure in their bid team, who turned whistleblower to expose corruption.
Phaedra Almajid says the weight of evidence of wrongdoing from her and others will be so overwhelming that FIFA will be left with no option but to find another host.
Almajid has been under protective custody of the FBI and she fears her safety will be compromised further if the tournament is taken away from the tiny oil-rich state, who shocked the world by winning the right to stage the 2022 event.
England is on hand to host the 2022 World Cup if it is stripped from Qatar in the wake of these allegations, culture secretary John Whittingdale has said.
Mr Whittingdale said the country has the facilities and mounted an impressive, if unsuccessful, bid to host the 2018 World Cup, and so could host the 2022 event if asked by FIFA.
He spoke as MPs asked whether England could step in to host the World Cup if allegations that the bid process for the Qatar tournament was corrupt are found to be true. (ToyeenB; Images: Google.com).