Stower79 wrote:Forgive me for my cynicism but Blatter runs FIFA. He is FIFA! This latest 'development' only smacks of Blatter engineering a situation whereby the heat goes off him for 90 days.....
All makes sense but I thought Blatter had effectively conceded that he couldn't be re-elected and was grooming Platini to take over - so why take action against Platini who was trying to look sufficiently squeaky clean?
But their relationship had broken down according to various reports. It seems to me that Blatter is not going down without implicating everybody else.
I'm not sure what 'action' is actually being taken by the Ethics Committee. Surely this is just a front to try and demonstrate FIFA are doing something without actually doing anything. At the end of the day the only organisations that will actually 'do' anything will be the Swiss authorities/ FBI etc. The Ethics Committee will then 'act' accordingly.
Probably not going to be particularly helpful to Platini's fifa presidential bid, his chances are now given a best price of 5/2 from 8/11 an hour ago with Prince Ali now odds on.
They still don’t get it, do they? Sepp Blatter, Michel Platini and Greg Dyke still don’t understand. Unlike Thomas Bach, the IOC president, they still can’t accept that enough is enough. They can’t see that it’s over. They have not learned that when the revolution comes and the gates to the palace are torn down, the usual platitudes of denial and outrage are not going to wash.
The gravy train has hit the buffers, boys, and everybody is rejoicing except you. Admit that the waters around you have grown. Nobody knows what the solution is yet, except that it is not Issa Hayatou. But out of the chaos of revolution, order eventually emerges and, anyway, it has got to the point where anything is preferable to the diseased venality of Blatter’s regime.
The fall of UEFA president Platini is the saddest of all the falls because of the beautiful player he once was and the opportunity he has wasted, but his outburst of pompous outrage at his 90-day suspension last week betrayed a shocking lack of awareness of the change that is sweeping through the game.
Platini appealed against his ban but earlier in the week it was bitterly funny to hear him talking about how the allegations he faces were ‘astonishingly vague’. It was funny because, actually, it is he who has been astonishingly vague about the mysterious payment of £1.3million that he received in 2011 from his former friend, Blatter, for work he did as his adviser between 1998 and 2002.
Platini has missed the point. He was once one of Blatter’s trusted confidants, he advised him, he did his work, he voted for Qatar to stage the 2022 World Cup in summer, he was paid lavish amounts of money by Blatter.
That he still has the front to put himself forward for the FIFA presidential election next year is staggering. That there are still people, like Dyke, keen to vote for him, is even more staggering. A vote for Platini now is a vote for the old ways and we have had our fill of them.
Unfortunately Dyke's reign, so promising when he bravely stood up and railed against Blatters' ludicrous and vote-chasing 'UEFA is racist' charge is rapidly turning sour, he's failing to recognize that supporting Platini so publically was a serious error that is now in danger of undermining his own crediblity.
Even ignoring the scandals, Platini is nearly as much of a dinosaur as Blatter. No skimpy costumes for women's football admittedly but he was against goal line technology etc. Still stuck in the 70s. Shame cos he was a fantastic footballer, more watchable than any French player in the WC winning era.
Mystery wrote:I think if anything Dyke can only be accused of naivety. But then again I anyways wondered how a TV executive made a good leader of a sporting body.
Mystery wrote:I think if anything Dyke can only be accused of naivety. But then again I anyways wondered how a TV executive made a good leader of a sporting body.
Interesting bit where Blatter points the finger at Michel Platini for Qatar.
"The suspended Fifa president has told Russian news agency TASS that the tournament was always lined up to go to Russia with the 2022 World Cup to be held in the USA - until Michel Platini decided to throw his weight behind Qatar."
I know Greg Dykehead was saying it would be great to get taxpayers money back but suspects Blatter will just say I was misquoted.
He wasn't very loud though in his condemnation of Platini and Qatar, but being his main cheerleader it probably suited him to confine himself to Russia 2018.
But South Africa got their one at Blatter's behest to spread the match to Africa? And what about that debacle in the Far East with the atrocious refereeing which did for the good European teams?
I would be surprised\shocked if he hasn't had a significant influence over where all the WC's have happened during his tenure.
The only surprise is that there is surprise, imho.
Blatter made a rambling speech saying FIFA didn't have enough money to pay Platini at the time - completely ludicrous as FIFA has been drowning in money from sponsors for years, his defence lacks any semblance of credibility.
Sadly it now looks odds-on that the same groups who did so much to keep Blatter in power and reform at bay, namely the footballing minnows of the African and Asian Confederations are going to use their huge block votes to outvote the major footballing powers of Europe and South America yet again and install Sheikh Salman of Bahrain as the next FIFA president.
One country one vote allows the major powers of Latin America (10 votes) and Europe to be completely outvoted by the virtual footballing makeweights, Africa the confederation with the most votes has 50 odd. It looks as though Blatter mark II is days away from appointment.
As someone so adept at using the 'how could I possibly know, I can't be responsible for everything' excuse he seems perfectly suited to the top role.
What are the chances of this outcome leading to the western FAs creating a rival organisation as the voting system is so skewed? Tiny I would imagine given the kickbacks all chiefs receive.
I can't see my love for football returning anytime soon.
Depressing stuff, if the Sheikh gets in then I can see more trouble and the IOC kicking football out of the Olympics (I believe they would as well, cycling is only one more big scandal away I reckon).
Infantino seems reasonable, but then you look at his suggestion for increasing the teams in the World Cup and his continued support for Blatter and Platini, and you realise he is no better.
The big FAs, especially in Sout America, are as much if not more corrupt (check out the enlargement of the Argentine league, or perhaps the legacy of the WC stadiums in Brazil), the leagues are self-serving and the big European clubs had their chance to do something when the 2022 Qatar discussions were in play and instead took a big pay off from Blatter to stay quiet.
Sounds like a "nothing really changes" outcome whether it's the Sheikh or Platini's minion, but at least it will be harder to keep dodgy practices secret after this. The alternative is a breakaway organisation run by the big European clubs and their owners, meaning a probable end to the World Cup, Euros and the possibility of fairytale stories like Leicester this season... which one is the lesser of two evils?
As for the Olympics, well they don't really need football and football doesn't really need them (perhaps even in the case of the women's game now). The IOC will surely never kick out athletics whatever happens as it's the flagship sport of the Games. Cycling is one of the strong second tier sports alongside swimming, rowing etc. while the team sports are expendable. The FIFA episode would be an easy excuse for the IOC to cut ties with football, but then does that set a precedent for athletics and cycling that will back them into a corner in future?
forestfan wrote:Sounds like a "nothing really changes" outcome whether it's the Sheikh or Platini's minion, but at least it will be harder to keep dodgy practices secret after this. The alternative is a breakaway organisation run by the big European clubs and their owners, meaning a probable end to the World Cup, Euros and the possibility of fairytale stories like Leicester this season... which one is the lesser of two evils?
As for the Olympics, well they don't really need football and football doesn't really need them (perhaps even in the case of the women's game now). The IOC will surely never kick out athletics whatever happens as it's the flagship sport of the Games. Cycling is one of the strong second tier sports alongside swimming, rowing etc. while the team sports are expendable. The FIFA episode would be an easy excuse for the IOC to cut ties with football, but then does that set a precedent for athletics and cycling that will back them into a corner in future?
Football and the Olympics doesn't matter one jot to football, so minor it's invisible - can't even remember who won it last time, probably as i didn't even notice it was in them.
Tacalabala wrote:Depressing stuff, if the Sheikh gets in then I can see more trouble and the IOC kicking football out of the Olympics (I believe they would as well, cycling is only one more big scandal away I reckon).
Infantino seems reasonable, but then you look at his suggestion for increasing the teams in the World Cup and his continued support for Blatter and Platini, and you realise he is no better.
The big FAs, especially in Sout America, are as much if not more corrupt (check out the enlargement of the Argentine league, or perhaps the legacy of the WC stadiums in Brazil), the leagues are self-serving and the big European clubs had their chance to do something when the 2022 Qatar discussions were in play and instead took a big pay off from Blatter to stay quiet.
Yes agree with this, France, Spain and Africa actually voted for Blatter when it was pretty much known just how corrupt he was. Infantino as Platini's side-kick was there for all his disasters too - the Euros expanded, FFS tried and pretty much abandoned, goalmouth technology put aside for European club competitions and now wants the World Cup to go to 40! As part of the inner circle he also must have known of the stories surrounding the Platini reign and like his master seems to be in denial.
Really only Prince Alli comes across as perhaps slightly less tarnished and more for reform of FIFA and he stands no chance.
As Forest says FIFA really needs to go as an organisation and with rumours of the FBI contemplating fresh raids this time too, it may not be beyond the bounds of possibility that that's how it all ends.
Tacalabala wrote:
Infantino seems reasonable, but then you look at his suggestion for increasing the teams in the World Cup and his continued support for Blatter and Platini, and you realise he is no better.
At least Sheikh Salman didn't get it. Reforms were passed, although still 11% opposed even that, so some progress.
UEFA has been one of the better run regions even though it's been headed by the now disgraced Platini, and it's Infantino's continued support for the former heads of FIFA and UEFA, plus his support for a bloated 40 team World Cup, which makes his victory reasonable only in that the very worst result was avoided.
Yeah, we have to give him a chance and see if he's as good as his word, and not just a continued Blattini apologist... probably the better option of the two main contenders as things stand. Not sure about 40-team World Cups, but if we get a cleaner bidding process that would be a start!
Sport Billy wrote:22 worldwide heads of Football Associations....(22!!!!!) Voted against reform, therefore suggesting FIFA were doing things right and needed no change?
22 !!!!!
Do we know which ones? And if so can the fbi investigate them next...
Sport Billy wrote:22 worldwide heads of Football Associations....(22!!!!!) Voted against reform, therefore suggesting FIFA were doing things right and needed no change?
22 !!!!!
Do we know which ones? And if so can the fbi investigate them next...
Probably the poorest countries who are ultra-loyal to the Blatter regime.
I'd like to see Infantino try and tackle the one nation one vote system... not necessarily carve it up between the superpowers as England, Australia and India have done in cricket, but at least acknowledge the fact that England, Spain and Germany deserve proportionately more influence on the world game than Eritrea, San Marino and Guinea-Bissau.
forestfan wrote:Yeah, we have to give him a chance and see if he's as good as his word, and not just a continued Blattini apologist... probably the better option of the two main contenders as things stand. Not sure about 40-team World Cups, but if we get a cleaner bidding process that would be a start!
The fact that he's proposing a incredibly bloated 40 team World Cup, with all the attendant mismatches and weeks of nonsense before any significant stage is reached, suggests an effort to pander to the widest possible audience. I would think the likes of Guinea-Bissau, The Cook Islands and other major football powers will continue to have the same influence as the 'has been' nations of Spain, Argentina and Germany. One country, one vote never made sense and still doesn't.
40 teams is rubbish if only that it wrecks the purity of a 32 team comp where 2nd in a group is 100% through and 3rd is 100% out. Make it 10 groups and that is wrecked. Make it groups of 5 and the ghosts of the 1982 fixes will be revived.
This article from journalist Paul Hayward neatly sums up why we should not be celebrating the election of a Blatini apologist with some very dubious ideas.
If newly elected head of world football is against what Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini represent he should say so and deserves no slack until he does
To welcome Gianni Infantino’s election victory you would need to ignore Sepp Blatter’s instant endorsement of the new Fifa president ( "he has all the qualities to continue my work,” said Blatter), forget who voted him in, cast aside the backdrop of institutionalised corruption and believe that the reform package passed in Zurich is for real.
You would need to overlook, too, the fact that Infantino ran on a ticket of expanding the World Cup to 40 teams and doubling payments from Fifa coffers to national associations: tasty pieces of bait to delegates who might have been tempted to risk the PR disaster of a Sheikh Salman presidency.
There is more. To consider this a new dawn from an organisation that has displayed many of the characteristics of an organised crime syndicate football fans would need to forgive Infantino for not distancing himself from Blatter and Michel Platini, his boss at Uefa, in the run-up to the vote.
In London, Infantino told the media: “I respect very much all the work he [Blatter] did in terms of football development, in particular around the world.” No prizes for spotting that much of the work Fifa did in “football development” ended with money going missing; for starters, the $10m South Africa supposedly paid to help the grass-roots game in the Caribbean - Jack Warner’s manor.
So Infantino’s platitudinous promise to “win back respect” for the pseudo parliament who awarded the 2018 World Cup to Russia and the 2022 tournament to Qatar is going to require a lot of supporting evidence to stop us thinking he was simply Uefa’s anti-everybody-else candidate, rushed up the line after Platini was banned for accepting a “disloyal payment” from Blatter.
Infantino’s election as president was stage two in a manic survival exercise by delegates, who were eager to find a winner who might stop the world despising them. The more important stage one was the passing of reforms that many veteran Fifa-watchers expect to be watered down when the old cliques recover their composure.
Does Infantino have the political clout (or will) to ensure that Fifa becomes transparent and honourable? There is no reason to believe he does, until he proves otherwise. This is the point: the onus is not on the public to applaud this shuffling of chairs at the top but on Fifa to demonstrate that it is entitled to continue trading.
Under threat of closure and disbandment, it gave the world what it thought the world wants: new structures, and a fresh figurehead, who had never expressed any desire to lead world football until Platini himself was stopped in that aspiration. Alexandra Wrage, who quit Fifa’s independent governance committee in frustration, predicted after the vote that there will be "at least one more round" of arrests in Blatter’s old football family.
Already people are saying Infantino is a nice chap to whom no mud has stuck. Sorry, but this has no relevance against a backdrop of a $200m fraud. Either he is against what Blatter and Platini represent (he refuses to say he is) or he is the reluctant bureaucrat pushed out front to reassure the punters.
Only this week Platini complained that "bureaucrats are taking over Fifa", and managed to make that sound like a bad thing. But he was right. Platini’s own bureaucrat has taken over Fifa, in a stunning ‘win’ for Europe in the face of increasing Middle Eastern power. But is Infantino a stooge or a statesman? Will the reforms be enforced with an iron fist or delayed at every turn.
To see Infantino bear-hugging those who elected him (doubtless for their own ends) hardly inspired confidence. The best advice: apply extreme caution, and certainly do not celebrate.
Former Platini cheerleader Greg Dyke was all smiles
Nobody was going to win without being something of an apologist for the old regime, Blatter and co. had too many allies even after all that went on.
Looks like Russia and Qatar will go ahead now, but hopefully things will be better for 2026 and 2030. If not, and if dodgy practices continue, FIFA surely will face the nuclear option of being shut down, and either a replacement created from scratch, or a free-for-all where football is run by the big clubs and/or major national FAs of Europe (and perhaps emerging powers like China and the USA).
It's certainly the era of the accidental leader, anyway. Corbyn, Trump, Infantino...
