LONDON - The 32 clubs in the summer's World Cup in France will be given detailed warning about bribes from officials of FIFA, the world governing body of soccer. FIFA's acting general secretary Michel Zen-Ruffinen, quoted in London's the Sunday Times, said security teams would be placed in the hotels of players and referees. But he admitted detection would be difficult.

If you bribe a defender and he provokes an unnecessary penalty, nobody will know, the newspaper quoted Zen-Ruffinen as saying. The most serious problem we have had so far was in the under-17s world cup competition in qatar in 1995, he added. We were contacted by coaches in the hotels who said some of their players had spent time in rooms with people coming to them offering gifts.

They weren't asking for anything in exchange. The newspaper said gangs behind the potential bribes were based in Asia, where millions will be bet on every game. The quarterfinal games are believed to be particularly susceptible, the newspaper said. Peter Velappan, head of the Asian Football Confederation, said match-fixing syndicates had targeted the quarterfinals of the 1994 World Cup in the United States. The newspaper said referees would be placed under guards in their hotels.

It said referees traveling to matches outside Paris would be accompanied by FIFA officials. (AP)