11:24am UK, Tuesday November 30, 2010
Corruption claims made against Fifa vice-president Issa Hayatou in a television documentary will be investigated by the International Olympic Committee.
Mr Hayatou, who leads African football, is also an IOC member and last night's BBC Panorama alleged he was given a bribe worth £10,000 in 1995 by a now-defunct marketing company.
Confirming its investigation, the IOC said it has "a zero tolerance against corruption and will refer the matter to the IOC ethics commission".
The news has emerged ahead of the arrival of David Beckham, the Prime Minister and Prince William in Zurich to show their support for England's 2018 World Cup bid.
On Thursday, in front of world leaders and stars, the executive committee of Fifa - world football's governing body - is due to announce who will host the World Cup finals in 2018 and 2022.
Claims were also made against Fifa's Ricardo Teixeira and Nicolas Leoz, as well as Mr Hayatou (r)
The team in charge of England's 2018 bid has criticised the BBC for Monday night's programme, which accused three Fifa executive committee members of taking bribes.
The claims centre around the head of Brazilian football, Ricardo Teixeira and the head of South American football, Nicolas Leoz, as well as Mr Hayatou.
The programme also accused a fourth Fifa executive committee member, Trinidad's Jack Warner, of attempting to sell World Cup tickets on the black market.
Panorama said it had obtained a confidential document from International Sports and Leisure (ISL), which detailed 175 payments totalling £64.3m, made between 1989 and 1999.
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