'World Cups fixed by hosts,' says Italian writer Marco Impiglia

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Football's biggest prize has twice been won with the help of dictators fixing matches for the host team, according to a Fifa-hosted conference on World Cup history.

Italian writer Marco Impiglia presented a paper suggesting Italy's fascist leader Benito Mussolini ensured favourable refereeing in 1934. Professor Raanan Rein said he was "100 per cent persuaded" that Argentina's military junta influenced a 6-0 win against Peru in 1978.