Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte phoned FIFA president Sepp Blatter on Thursday in an effort to convince him that the Holland-Belgium bid for the 2018 World Cup was a viable one.

“The Netherlands and Belgium are extremely motivated, and capable of organising a fantastic World Cup”, Mr Rutte told the FIFA chief.

The move came after football’s world governing body had judged the bid's political support from the countries as poor in an executive summary on the four World Cup candidates, out on Wednesday.

The summary gave the Holland-Belgium bid a medium-risk assessment, and the others are all low-risk. In addition, it expressed concern about hotel and training facilities and challenges thrown up by co-hosting.

The other three contenders to host the FIFA World Cup 2018 are England, Russia, and a joint-bid from Spain and Portugal. Twenty-two members of the FIFA executive committee will deliver their final verdict on 2 December.

Voting members banned
Initially, the voting committee was 24 strong, but two members were banned and fined earlier on Thursday amid allegations they had offered to sell their votes in the contest to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

Claims that some bidding countries were guilty of collusion before the vote in Zurich were dismissed by FIFA’s ethics committee.

Following last week’s visit to France, the Holland-Belgium bid team led by Dutch star Ruud Gullit are in São Paulo, Brazil on Friday, where they’ll open the first Cruyff Court.

Cruyff courts are playing fields which offer children a safe place to play sport, and they’re part of the package of measures listed in the 650-page Holland-Belgium bid book to promote the game worldwide.