--- description: World Cup officials allegedly accepted valuable works of art from Russia as it was bidding to host the 2018 soccer tournament title: World Cup Kickbacks Allegedly Include a Picasso Painting image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5050f86be9922b65/69876b97e20a87fd45a83a70/fifa-world-cup-sepp-blatter.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Sports](/section/sports/) ## Sports Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [World Cup](/tag/world-cup/) ## World Cup Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Report: Russia's World Cup Kickbacks Included Picasso Painting  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 1, 2014 3:46 PM CUT  FIFA president Joseph Blatter delivers his speech prior to the Ground Breaking Ceremony of the FIFA Goal Project III for the national teams' training center at the San Lazaro Leisure and Business Park in Cavite province, south of Manila, Philippines, Nov. 30, 2014. FIFA president Joseph Blatter delivers his speech prior to the Ground Breaking Ceremony of the FIFA Goal Project III for the national teams' training center at the San Lazaro Leisure and Business Park in Cavite province, south of Manila, Philippines, Nov. 30, 2014.Dennis M. Sabangan—EPA  by [Dan Kedmey](/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 1, 2014 3:46 PM CUT World Cup officials accepted valuable works of art from Russia as it was bidding to host the 2018 soccer tournament, according to a new report published Monday. The [dossier](http://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/15880.pdf "undefined") of findings, which was submitted by investigative reporters at a British newspaper to a UK Parliamentary committee, includes allegations that Russia’s successful bid to host the tournament in 2018 was bolstered by a handout of a Picasso painting to FIFA executive member Michel Platini. Belgian executive committee member Michel D’Hooghe also allegedly accepted a valuable painting. Investigative reporters for British newspaper the _Sunday Times_[gathered](http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk%5Fnews/fifa/article1489975.ece "undefined") allegations by unnamed whistleblowers, including a British intelligence agent who reportedly spied on rival countries’ bids to host the World Cup tournament. The dossier also alleges that Russia and Qatar traded votes for their successful bids as part of a gas deal. Platini dismissed the allegations as “total fabrications,” CNN [reports](http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/30/sport/football/football-platini-picasso-world-cup/index.html "undefined"), while D’Hooghe characterized the painting given to him as “absolutely ugly,” and insisted it had no bearing on his vote, which he said did not go in favor of Russia. The House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee accepted the dossier as part of an ongoing investigation into the World Cup bidding process. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3611536/world-cup-picasso-russia-platini/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3611536/world-cup-picasso-russia-platini/"},"headline":"Report: Russia's World Cup Kickbacks Included Picasso Painting","datePublished":"2014-12-01T15:46:13.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T02:27:54.228Z","description":"Insiders allege a system of kickbacks helped countries secure bids to host the game","url":"https://time.com/3611536/world-cup-picasso-russia-platini/","keywords":["World Cup","corruption","Soccer","bribery"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5050f86be9922b65/69876b97e20a87fd45a83a70/fifa-world-cup-sepp-blatter.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Dan Kedmey","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5050f86be9922b65/69876b97e20a87fd45a83a70/fifa-world-cup-sepp-blatter.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"FIFA president Joseph Blatter graces the ground breaking ceremony of the FIFA Goal Project III","caption":"FIFA president Joseph Blatter graces the ground breaking ceremony of the FIFA Goal Project III","creditText":"Dennis M. 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