Bin Hammam makes FIFA collusion claims

Suspended FIFA executive member Mohamed Bin Hammam has hit out at the forces he says are trying to ruin his reputation.

Bin Hammam, who is also the president of the Asian Football Confederation, was suspended in May on corruption charges but has vowed to clear his name when he appears before a FIFA ethics committee hearing on Friday.

It is alleged Bin Hammam attempted to bribe members of the Caribbean Football Union at a meeting in Trinidad in May in order to secure their votes in the FIFA presidential election, in which he was standing against incumbent Sepp Blatter.

But the Qatari said the case against him did not add up and that certain parties were trying to sabotage his election campaign.

A statement from Bin Hammam on his website read: “Why was the FIFA ethics committee in such a hurry to suspend me before the FIFA election took place, and then begin to search for evidence to find if I am guilty or not?”

“Why have I not been treated in a similar way to others who, according to the ethics committee, received inducements?”

“With just a few days to go before my hearing, there can be no doubt that there has been a campaign waged within certain quarters to ensure that I am seen to be guilty and eliminated from football in the court of public opinion, even before my hearing has started.”

“The leaking of confidential information by individuals to the media, before the entire story had been told in a manner that is fair to all sides, was done for their own purposes and personal agendas.”

Despite his allegations of a conspiracy against him, Bin Hammam remained confident he would get a fair hearing.

“Despite these clear attempts to besmirch my name in the public domain, I will not allow my own suspicions to dash my hopes or to make me think, as some would wish, that I will have to travel a long and hard road to clear my name of the stain of this politically motivated affair,” he said.

“My years serving football and FIFA lead me to think, and presume, that at the very least the ethics committee will give me the fair hearing that I deserve, uninfluenced by political agendas or other interests.”

“Notwithstanding the bias and the absence of fair proceedings since the start of this trial … my legal team and I have been working very hard to provide convincing grounds that fair play was highly respected and observed throughout my election campaign … in accordance with Fifa’s own practices as laid down by its rules and regulations.”