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Russia and Qatar deny bribing FIFA officials to secure World Cup hosting rights

Officials from Russia and Qatar have hit back at an indictment from the United States that alleges they secured World Cup hosting rights through bribery.

On Monday the US Department of Justice unsealed an indictment that alleges Russia and Qatar bribed FIFA executive committee members to secure hosting rights for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, respectively.

The indictments followed on from the Department of Justice's round of indictments in 2015 that eventually led to the resignation of FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

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Despite the action taken by the American government, the Kremlin has insisted that it did nothing wrong in its bidding process to host the 2018 World Cup.