Ukraine relieved Polish soccer problems with FIFA solved

Ukraine's soccer chief expressed relief yesterday that Poland, its partner in a bid to stage the 2012 European soccer championship, had resolved its differences with FIFA.

Hryhory Surkis, the key Ukrainian official behind the bid, said settling the row pitting world soccer's governing body against Poland's government had been essential to keeping the two countries' hopes alive.

The Warsaw government backed down on Monday, agreeing to FIFA's demand that top soccer officials be restored to jobs from which they had been sacked in January.

"Luckily, we managed to reconcile the conflict with Michal Listkiewicz reinstated in his former position," Surkis told a news conference, referring to the head of the Polish football association.

"Settlement of the conflict was our primary task since it endangered our common bid with Poland for Euro 2012."

The Polish government suspended the FA's board amid a corruption scandal that implicated more than 70 officials. Ukraine's soccer federation accused Polish Sports Minister Tomasz Lipiec of undermining the bid by refusing to back down.

FIFA had threatened to ban the national team and Polish clubs from international matches.

But the board was reinstated on Monday and FIFA chief Sepp Blatter and Polish President Lech Kaczynski said a compromise had been reached.

A joint commission of UEFA, FIFA and government representatives will oversee the staging of a special congress of the association's members to elect new management.

The joint Ukraine-Poland bid is one of three being considered by UEFA along with a solo bid by Italy and a joint submission from Croatia and Hungary.

The winner will be announced by UEFA's 15-man executive committee on April 18.