Fabio Capello called up by FA to help England's bid for 2018 World Cup

The FA believe that Capello's personality and reputation as one of the globe's finest coaches will help them persuade Fifa powerbrokers to vote for England.

The FA have already named David Beckham, John Barnes and England women's team coach Hope Powell as vice-presidents and Capello will join the trio on a charm offensive. England's manager will be used to meet and greet the Fifa executive committee members who will decide whether the 2018 World Cup is staged in England, Spain, Russia or Australia.

Between now and when the vote is made in 2011, England are scheduling a series of friendlies with countries whose federations boast Fifa executive committee members. Between training sessions, Capello will be asked to do goodwill visits and promotional work for 2018.

“I shall do everything I can to help England’s cause,’’ Capello said. “This is an opportunity to offer England’s future players the chance to represent their country in front of their own fans and as national coach I know what an exciting prospect that is. My prime responsibility is to build a national team that will compete at the highest level but if I can also help to strengthen England’s claims to stage the World Cup tournament I shall consider it a tremendous honour.”

The make-up of the 2018 executive board has been criticised as overly political, with people such as Baroness Amos, Gerry Sutcliffe and Richard Caborn involved, but the vice-presidents are primarily football figures. The two exceptions are Lord Stern, a political ally of Gordon Brown and noted for a report on climate change.

The FA believe that Stern's presence will give their bid a "green'' feel. The Tesco chief executive, Sir Terry Leahy, is also among the six unveiled by the FA on Tuesday. A keen Everton supporter, Leahy has worked with the FA on a skills scheme, although the presence of somebody from the supermarket business will inevitably raise the sensitive issue of the selling-off of school playing fields for commercial development.

The Professional Footballers Association's chief executive, Gordon Taylor, brings his experience to the 2018 cause and an ability to provide players for promotional activities. The FA are keen to remind Fifa that the Premier League is effectively the world league based in England; supportive comments from some of the elite's foreign stars will undoubtedly follow.

In an attempt to address Premier League concerns over the balance of the bid, the FA have appointed Chelsea's chief executive, Peter Kenyon, as a vice-president. Superficially a controversial selection because of his occasional habit of making outlandish statements, Kenyon allows the FA to tap into Chelsea's increasing worldwide glamour and contacts. (Manchester United's David Gill is already on board.)

The sixth vice-president chosen was Geoff Thompson, Lord Triesman's predecessor as FA chairman and now vice-president of Fifa. Although Thompson proved a hopeless chairman, he has become a highly-respected figure in the corridors of power at Fifa and Uefa. Apart from the FA's head of international relations, Jane Bateman, no one at Soho Square knows more administrators at the top of world football than Thompson.