Qatar's Emir hits back at corruption allegations surrounding Gulf state's 2022 WC bid

The eighth and current Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, has hit back at corruption allegations that have been directed at the Gulf state's successful bid for the 2022 World Cup.

Speaking during a visit to Washington, the Qatari ruler said that the allegations of bribery surrounding FIFA's deeply controversial 2010 decision to award the World Cup to his country had never been proven.

Thani said that those allegations, he had just said, there is a FIFA and they had people investigating and everything they investigated with everybody, all officials in Qatar, and they found out that there is nothing about that, Sport24 reported.

Qatar has repeatedly denied accusations of fraudulence over the 2022 bid, but Thani, who acceded to the throne in June 2013, has rarely spoken on the subject.

Thani said that this World Cup is for all the Arabs and that is why they were successful, insisting that it is a big challenge.

Qatar won the 2022 tournament after seeing off competition from Japan, South Korea, Australia and the United States, the report added.