23 Oct 2009Ambassadors named for 2018 FIFA World Cup bid

Football Leagues/ Association and Governance | Football Referees, Players, Managers and Media

The team behind England's bid to host the FIFA World Cup in 2018 have revealed a squad of ambassadors for the campaign.

As well as current England players and former stars of the national team, the group includes foreign players from the English Premier League such as Chelsea's Michael Ballack and Robinho of Manchester City.

Germany captain Ballack said that he believes England would make "a fitting host" for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Commenting on his experience in the English Premier League, he added: "The atmosphere and competitive nature of English football has been a great experience, playing with and against the best players in the world."

Also including in the ambassadors squad are Tottenham Hotspur legends Osvaldo Ardiles and Ricardo Villa, West Ham United manager Gianfranco Zola and former England bosses Graham Taylor, Terry Venables and Sven-Goran Eriksson.

The bid team were criticised this week for giving luxury handbags to the wives of members of FIFA's executive committee as gifts, with shadow sports minister Hugh Robertson describing the move as "a massive misjudgement".

Written by Terry Mitchell

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