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Both of those votes were, in effect, Scottish votes, courtesy of and who was representing Oceania. Interestingly, Will, now retired, feels that England are being badly let down by Europe. "The feeling after was when Europe's turn came again England would get a free ride," he told me.

"There was no agreement, gentlemen or otherwise, but that was the general view expressed after the 2006 vote, that Europe would get behind England. But that is clearly not going to happen now."

Europe, far from uniting behind England, looks like presenting four bids - and that means there is a very real danger of them all heading for an early bath when voting takes place in December 2010. Look at it this way. There could be as many as six European countries bidding for the right to stage the tournament. England and will bid in their own right while and .

England, Spain, Russia and Belgium all have Fifa executive members, so in the first round each of the four European bids should get at least one vote each. (Unlike the IOC or Uefa, Fifa do not stop members voting for themselves).

That leaves four more votes to go around - and at this stage there is no knowing how they will be divided up.

As for the rest of the world, , and have all submitted their intention to bid, while the United States of America, China, Canada and Mexico could join them before the 2 February deadline.

Russia has developed the knack of surprising everyone, thanks chiefly to Vladimir Putin's abilities to charm. Look back to last year when Sochi, which has virtually no winter sports facilities, beat more fancied Salzburg and Pychongeang for the right to stage the .

However, I feel that the bigger threat to England's chances of staging the 2018 World Cup comes from Spain. Their alliance with Portugal, who provoked anger amongst the Spanish by beating their Iberian neighbours to the right to host , strengthens the bid on the ground and also make it likely they will get all three South American votes. They may even land a couple of the unattached European votes.

England need to make sure they have the right bid vehicle. At the moment, there is no shortage of politicians or members of the House of Lords , but two crucial people have been sidelined. , is not part of the team despite the fact that the Premier League remains England's best calling card when making deals with members of the Fifa executive.

Richards, I am told, was not consulted when the bid committee was formed. , was made vice-chairman but all Richards was offered was an ambassadorship, a post he declined. So on Tuesday, while England's 2018 bid team gathered at Wembley, Richards met other Europeans bidding for 2018. He was effectively outside the tent when he should have been in it.

, is a sort of detached member of the 2018 bid. He has an ambassadorial role as vice-president, but this is a nominal position on par with that of other ambassadors like John Barnes and David Beckham. As our man inside the corridors of power and widely respected in Europe, as opposed to his reputation at home, Thompson ought to be more involved.

If the bid wants to make real headway, then it should consider taking a leaf out of . That rose above domestic politics to construct a bid that defeated favourites Paris. The 2018 team boasts plenty of politicians, but they are of the Westminster hue when what is needed are sports politicians who understand football.

Politics will decide the destination of the 2018 World Cup, as it has with recent bids, so England need to play the right political game if they want to win.