Whistleblower: Blatter is a 'diabolical genius' - but corruption was Fifa's, not Russia's or Qatar's

A whistleblower who accused Fifa of corruption over Qatar's 2022 World Cup bid has decibed Sepp Blatter as a "diabolical genius" - and warned that his entourage of loyal followers would mean his influence over the game was unlikely to end with his resignation.

Phaedra Al-Majid accused the footballing body last year of deliberately revealing her identity and discrediting her claims in an attempt to stop others from speaking out.

Read: Fifa whistleblower: I fear for my safety

Speaking to ITV News today, she said she believed Mr Blatter's resignation was little more than a tactical move by the incumbent president - and said he still had many people he could "control" who would ensure he would still hold sway over the so-called 'Beautiful Game' in the future.

It comes after Mr Blatter, who has served as Fifa president for 17 years, handed in his shock resignation yesterday following a week of allegations of corruption against 14 senior officials.

The FBI has now confirmed it is investigating Mr Blatter as part of its operation.

Ms Al-Majid said he had managed to "manipulate" himself into a position of power - and said she believed he would never be up before the courts himself due to the number of people who "owe" him.

Meanwhile, she said the 2018 and 2022 World Cups should not be stripped from host nations Russia and Qatar, as "every country did something unethical".

The two winning nations simply had "deeper pockets" than the others, she added - and that was just the way Fifa played things. She argued that their winning bids should not be scrapped unless every other bid is also binned, and the process started from scratch.

ITV News Washington correspondent Robert Moore reports: