2018 England

The Chelsea chief executive came out calling for unity in light of the disagreement between the FA Chairman and the Premier League CEO. Lord Triesman and Richard Scudamore disagreed on the issue of club debt, and this could potentially put into risk the English bid for the World Cup which will be held 10 years from now. This would bring the biggest football event back to its mother, and showcase the world-class facilities possessed by this illustrious football nation.

Kenyon asked both leaders not to waste time in internal conflicts, and to row the boat in the same direction by putting all their energies behind the English bid for 2018. Presently, the Premier League holds no representative on the 2018 bid board. Relations between the two parties must improve unless they want to risk throwing away this golden chance of hosting the event.

“It’s important that both parties speak with a single voice.”

“If we are not careful there are own goals that could be scored which don’t have to be.”

Kenyon believes in the ability of the nation to host the world-class event, and is convinced that the World Cup would help English football to progress further.
“Everyone around the table wants English football to progress and that doesn’t mean just club football. It means ultimately getting the World Cup in 2018.”
“We have a fantastic product. The structure of the 2018 project is still being finalised and I’m sure there are plenty of opportunities for a broader group to be active in the bid.”

“Once this thing gets rolling, it will engage. As I travel round the world, the leagues and the associations are not contradictory and speak in the same vein on issues. This is where we need to concentrate our efforts. We should not be shooting ourselves in the foot at critical times like this.” – Peter Kenyon

Kenyon was one of the 6 vice-presidents appointed for the bid. The other five are present England manager Fabio Capello, ex-FA Chairman Geoff Thompson, PFA CEO Gordon Taylor, Tesco CEO Sir Terry Leahy, and Lord Stern of Brentford, former chief economist of the World Bank.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/7723193.stm