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| Fifa corruption claims 'shocking but not surprising' | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Allegations of corruption at world football's governing body Fifa were "shocking" but "far from surprising", a minister has told Parliament. | |
| Culture, Media and Sport Secretary John Whittingdale said Fifa was "deeply flawed and corrupt". | |
| MP Stephen Phillips raised the matter in an urgent question in the House of Commons. | |
| Seven top Fifa officials were arrested in Zurich on Wednesday following a long-running FBI investigation. | Seven top Fifa officials were arrested in Zurich on Wednesday following a long-running FBI investigation. |
| Swiss authorities have simultaneously launched an inquiry into the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. | Swiss authorities have simultaneously launched an inquiry into the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. |
| Mr Whittingdale said Fifa should be the "guardian of the world's most popular sport", not an organisation whose members "seek to profit personally from the passion of the game's fans". | |
| "I fully support the Football Association's position that significant and wide-ranging reforms are urgently needed at the very top of Fifa, including a change in its leadership," he said. | |
| 'Game over' | 'Game over' |
| Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has told the BBC there is "something deeply wrong at the heart of Fifa" and it needed to "clean up its act". | Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has told the BBC there is "something deeply wrong at the heart of Fifa" and it needed to "clean up its act". |
| The arrests have sparked concerns among some of Fifa's sponsors, who say they may review their ties over the corruption allegations. | The arrests have sparked concerns among some of Fifa's sponsors, who say they may review their ties over the corruption allegations. |
| Former Attorney General Lord Goldsmith, who was a member a committee set up by Fifa to look at possible reforms, said he had warned Fifa that if it did not "get its act together" someone else would come in and "take over". | Former Attorney General Lord Goldsmith, who was a member a committee set up by Fifa to look at possible reforms, said he had warned Fifa that if it did not "get its act together" someone else would come in and "take over". |
| "It's really game over for Fifa in that sense," he said. "They're going to have to hand back the ref's whistle." | "It's really game over for Fifa in that sense," he said. "They're going to have to hand back the ref's whistle." |
| Fifa president Sepp Blatter, who has not been named in the investigations, said on Wednesday: "Such misconduct has no place in football and we will ensure that those who engage in it are put out of the game." |