NOT since Heysel has English football been in such urgent need of friends at court, and seldom have friends that matter, those with clout in the inner councils of the international game, been so thin on the ground.
The Football Association has received strong home support for its determination to challenge UEFA's decision to back Germany's bid to host the 2006 World Cup. Just how much the FA can achieve by going it alone remains to be seen.
The reality, however, is that, so far as deciding who hosts the 2006 World Cup is concerned, the only people who count will be those sitting on the FIFA executive committee when the votes are cast in the summer of 2000.
At present there are 21 delegates: Europe (eight votes), South America (three), CONCACAF (three), Africa (three), Asia (three), Oceania (one). By tradition, the president of FIFA does not vote, and the general secretary does not have a vote.
The 80 year old Brazilian, Joao Havelange, is still president. Sepp Blatter is the general secretary.
In 18 months, however, there should be a radical change. Havelange has indicated that he will retire and his most likely successor is Lennart Johansson, the 70 year old Swedish president of UEFA, who is also head of the organising committee for the 1998 World Cup in France.
For some time now it has been assumed that the African votes which helped Havelange achieve and retain office will be thrown behind Johansson on the understanding that he will hand over power in 2002 to the head of the African confederation, Issa Hayatou.
But Johansson is no longer everybody's favourite alternative. He upset the Africans by making apparently racist remarks in a Swedish newspaper interview. He also failed to withdraw, as an interested party, when FIFA discussed the ramifications of Estonia's non appearance for a World Cup qualifier with Scotland after a row over the suitability of the floodlights. Sweden are in the same group.
Yet whatever happens when FIFA meets in France next year, it is difficult to see how England's case for 2006 can benefit. Havelange is for South Africa, and in typical maverick fashion guaranteed them the next World Cup but two - until someone mentioned that Germany were also in the running.
If Germany wins the vote for 2006, then South Africa, an attractive commercial proposition, not least for British business interests, will surely host the World Cup in 2010. The Africans, however, might not want to wait that long. Either way, England's chances of staging the tournament it last saw in 1966 much before 2022 are already looking remote.
