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Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has slammed Sepp Blatter and Fifa for choosing South Africa to host this summer’s World Cup.

Hoeness, who says he will not be attending the tournament, cited security concerns and low ticket sales as evidence that Fifa was wrong to give the event to Africa for the first time.

"I was never a friend of a World Cup in South Africa and Africa as long as the security issue is not 100 per cent solved," Hoeness told Munich newspaper Muenchner Merkur.

"Mr Blatter had to have his way. I always considered it wrong. Now you have to make the best out of it [but] I am convinced that deep down Mr Blatter has realised that giving the World Cup to South Africa was one of the biggest wrong decisions he ever made.”

However, Fifa has hit back angrily, accusing German and English football figures and the media of undermining the tournament by constantly criticising the host nation.

As well as Hoeness, former West Germany captain and coach Franz Beckenbauer and Hull City manager Phil Brown have questioned the security situation in Africa.

But Fifa secretary general Jérôme Valcke said: "We should stop seeing articles with someone saying the World Cup is the biggest mistake in the world organised here in South Africa. It's unfair, it's really bad and it's sad.

"It's sad that every morning you wake up and there are ¬articles saying people should not fly to South Africa, that it's a dangerous country, that this is not good, this is not nice, that there's no way this person will fly to South Africa because it's a crazy country, that Fifa made the wrong decision to go to South Africa.

"It's insane. It's definitely completely wrong. What we are asking is at least that there is fair treatment to South Africa as all the other World Cup hosts."

Asked where most of the criticism was originating, he added: "Mainly from Germany and England. I'm not seeing so much from France, Italy, Spain or Holland or the other countries who have qualified. But these two countries are a very strong voice in the football family."