FIFA 2022 WC whistleblower claims being introduced to paranoia, fear, threats

FIFA whistleblower Phaedra Al-Majid has said that her accusations of corruption against Qatar's successful 2022 World Cup bid has introduced her to a whole new culture of paranoia, fear and threats.

Al-Majid said that she would look over her shoulder for the rest of her life after making the allegations of corruption against Qatar's successful 2022 World Cup bid. In a two-year inquiry, which cleared Qatar, Al-Majid repeated allegations she made and later retracted in 2011.

She revealed that her accusations introduced her to a whole new culture of paranoia, fear and threats. In response, Qatar said that they stand by the integrity of their bid, The BBC reported. The country's World Cup organising body has always vehemently denied all allegations of wrongdoing. They said a series of allegations about their conduct had been over a period of years, investigated, tested, considered and dismissed.

Al-Majid's allegations that Qatari bid officials offered to pay for the votes of three FIFA members first came to light in 2011. Later the same year she signed an affidavit saying they were false.

The whistleblower now said that she was coerced into changing her statement. She said that she had no more legal representation, adding that when the Qataris approached her, she was alone.

Al-Majid also said that she is the single mother of two children, one of whom is severely autistic and severely disabled. She said officers from the FBI visited her in September 2011 after they became aware of threats against her.

She claimed that they questioned her about the Qatari bidding process and they questioned her about all the threats she had received from the Qataris. She added that it was decided at that point that she would help them with their investigation and it was planned that she would talk to a senior official at the Qatar bid.

So when Al-Majid talked to the official, and the FBI were recording this, she claimed that he did admit that there was a deal for the affidavit that she would basically say that they had done no wrongdoing.

Al-Majid, who says she is tired of FIFA's culture of secrecy, provided all her information to Garcia while he was compiling his 430-page report on allegations of wrongdoing in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bid process, the report added.