Fifa delegate claims he was invited to Royal Wedding as encouragement to vote for England's 2018 World Cup bid

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Updated: 02:21 EST, 5 May 2011

A South American football executive has sensationally alleged that he was invited to the Royal wedding as an enticement to vote for England's 2018 World Cup bid.

Nicolas Leoz, the Paraguayan president of the CONMEBOL confederation, claimed he received an invite to the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton just a day before Fifa awarded the 2018 World Cup to Russia, rather than England.

As Prince William returned to work at RAF Valley in Anglesey, his spokesman has issued a strong denial of Mr Leoz's astonishing allegations.

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Clarence House spokesman Paddy Harverson said: 'No one from FIFA was offered an invitation to the wedding in return for their vote, I can categorically state that.'

Leoz was quoted in the Paraguayan press as saying: 'I was invited on the occasion of our recent meeting [in December].'

Leoz said he was 'unfortunately' not able to attend due to the congress of the CONMEBOL in his home city Asuncion.

Mr Harverson insisted there had been some banter about William's forthcoming wedding during lobbying for England 2018 but no invitations were issued.

Immediately after the vote, which was won by Russia, Prime Minister David Cameron revealed a jocular exchange between himself and William after the prince had met a FIFA executive committee member.

Invitation: Nicolas Leoz, left, (pictured with Colombia's President Andres Pastrana in 2001) claims he was offered a invitation to the Royal Wedding

Cameron said: 'He said it had gone really, really well. I said: 'Gosh, how did you do it? What did you offer him, an invitation to the wedding?'

'He said: "Prime Minister, I went so far I think I offered to marry him!".'

In 2008, 82-year-old Leoz was named by fraud investigators in Switzerland as having received bribes totalling £65,000 from collapsed TV rights company ISL.

No action has ever been taken against him by FIFA.

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