MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Hoax information in the German media about corruption during the 2018 FIFA World Cup bidding process is expected to be published on April 7-8, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said Thursday.
"The information attack in German media on the corruption in the [Russia 2018] World Cup hosting rights awarding is expected to happen on April 7-8," Mutko said.
He reiterated that Russia obtained the tournament hosting rights in a fair and transparent competition.
In May 2015, the US Justice Department charged nine FIFA officials and five corporate executives with allegedly receiving some $150 million in bribes. The same month, Switzerland launched a separate probe into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup tournaments, to be held in Russia and Qatar respectively. Moscow repeatedly denied any collusion during the bidding process to win the right to host the tournament.
The 2018 FIFA World Cup will be held from June 14 to July 15 in 11 Russian cities, including Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Rostov-on-Don, Sochi and Volgograd.