England apologises for Lord Triesman's bribing allegations against Spain, Russia

London, May 22(ANI): England's new World Cup 2018 chief Geoff Thompson has personally apologised to Spain's football chief for Lord Triesman's infamous bribery claims.

According to reports, Thompson conveyed his personal apologies on behalf of the bid team to the head of the Spanish Football Association Angel Maria Villar Llona, who is also head of FIFA's refereeing committee.

Thompson will also meet Russia's FIFA representative Vitaly Mutko in a further attempt at damage limitation ahead of the Champions League final, The Daily Express reports.

Lord Triesman, the ex-FA chairman and former bid leader, was forced to resign last Sunday after a newspaper published transcripts from a recorded conversation in which he made serious allegations against the Spanish and Russian football associations.

He had suggested that the Spanish federation was willing to support Russia's bid for the 2018 tournament in exchange for assistance in bribing referees at this year's World Cup in South Africa to Spain's advantage.

The revelations are believed to have done immense harm to England's cause, but officials are confident that they have begun the process of smoothing away the fallout. (ANI)