Don't worry Mr. Akram, Sepp puts me to sleep too

I'm a nice guy ... just ask me.

SWISS COURT BANS CARTOON BOOK – BECAUSE ‘IT WOULD DAMAGE BLATTER’S GOOD REPUTATION’

Thin-skinned Sepp Blatter has persuaded a Zurich court to ban a book of jovial cartoons about him.

The power of Blatter to bully Swiss justice officials was revealed when his lawyers wrote to the court insisting that the cartoons, by former footballer and noted graphics artist Olé Andersen, were so damaging that they should issue an immediate ban urgently before actually hearing any arguments from him.

Blatter’s lawyers claimed that he ‘has a good reputation and if the cartoons were published he would never be able to repair the damage.’ ...

See the whole story here (and the court complaint), courtesy of Transparency in Sport.

Kicking Back Comments: Long live the Freedom of Speech and the Press in the US and abroad. I just hope The Platter Cartoons are available in the US soon and I would just love to help 'the cause.'

Maybe David Lee Roth ...

Tim Roth to play Fifa president Sepp Blatter on film

British actor Tim Roth is to star as Fifa president Sepp Blatter in a film about football's governing body.

Provisionally titled F2014, Gerard Depardieu will also appear in the movie as Jules Rimet - one of Fifa's founders and its longest-serving president. ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of the BBC.

Kicking Back Comments: Don't get me wrong, Tim Roth is a very talented actor indeed and I am sure will portrait Sepp better than the real Sepp could ever hope for.

What I found funny in the article was that the real Sepp found some "similarities" to Tim Roth in real life, to which I had to think that the real Sepp was more akin to David Lee Roth's character in the below video, not the distinguished actor Tim Roth.

What's that about art imitating life ... or something like that?

Sepp TV indeed.

Oh what a day for Twitter!!

... and here I was thinking that my day could not get any better with disgraced NY Representative Anthony Weiner returning to Twitter after a two year hiatus after photographing his private parts and Tweeting them across the globe ...

I was wrong.

Sepp had his Twitter account hacked, and during that time, Tweeted things like:

"It was decided that the president Sepp Blatter is to step down due to corruption charges."

and

"So what if I took money from Qatari prince? I am the family's bread earner"

Classic stuff indeed.

While Sepp was the victim of a genuine hack, and Mr. Weiner was the victim of his own stupidity, the end result is the same in that I will be waiting to see what spews from their respective accounts next.

For the record, it was not me who hacked Sepp, the Syrian Electronic Army has taken responsibility for the incident.

Sepp Blatter: "I'm a star"

FIFA Boss Blatter Eyes TV Career

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has declared his interest in pursuing a career in football commentary after he stands down from the sport's governing body in 2015.

Blatter told Sky Sports in the UK that he hoped to fulfil a childhood dream by working in the media as a commentator or reporter. ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of BigPond Soccer.

Kicking Back Comments: Well I would say that Sepp on TV would be entertaining. Not for the reasons he thinks he would be, but the sheer comedy of it.

Later in the article he was quoted (and I have to hope, mis-quoted) regarding the reception of "Boo's" 80,000 strong before the Olympic final in 2012 and stated that not only were the British fans not educated (about The Game), but that "Stars are always booed so I'm a star, you have to take it this way."

Are you (bleep)ing me?

I can hope that it was meant tongue in cheek in an effort to deflect for the poor reception he received. Here, you be the judge on the "small boos":

Well, this is the "star" that worked as a PR rep for a Swiss tourism board, cowardly refused to apologize to Valentin Ivanov after completely inappropriate comments following a 2006 World Cup match, and is known for his back room deals. This is how "stars" act?

True stars are magnanimous, they give off light. They shine, and make others shine. Pele is a star, Brian McBride is a star.

Sepp is not a "star" ... more like a "black hole", the most self absorbing thing in the universe.

We've got your bias right here ...

Blatter focuses on soccer milestones, not scandals

BERLIN -- A beaming Sepp Blatter took the dais at Olympic Stadium to talk about FIFA's love of women's soccer -- and nothing else -- at the Women's World Cup 2011 opening press conference Saturday .

The FIFA President spoke with enthusiasm on "Frauenfussball" and reveled in the furious din of clicking cameras as he handed a game ball to Steffi Jones, president of the organizing committee and a former Germany player herself. The photographers, one carrying a zoom lens usually reserved for taking pictures of distant skiers, eagerly snapped away.

Most of the questions elicited a few more comments on "Frauenfussball" and some dollar figures. But one reporter changed the tone slightly when he asked if the recent Playboy pictorial featuring female soccer players was a sign of "progress," given Blatter's infamous suggestion years ago that women's uniforms should go shorter and tighter to show off more of players' bodies.

See the whole story here, courtesy of ESPN.

Kicking Backs Comments: I am already in trouble from my last post, even repeating the comments from another that there are differences between the men's and women's game. Good old Sepp, stands on his own for these comments. Beyond that, I have no comments.

Thank you @FakeSepp ... It's a gift that keeps on giving!!

** Reader warning: Some of @FakeSepp's tweets are somewhat off color and free of any political correctness **


If you get the chance though, check it out ... especially the birthday tweets (#happybirthdaysepp)

I'm with Sepp on this one

English FA could have sanctioned Rooney, says Blatter

NEWPORT, Wales (Reuters) - The English FA would have been within its rights to sanction Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney following an elbowing incident last week, FIFA President Sepp Blatter said on Saturday.

The FA said it could not retrospectively take action against Rooney for elbowing Wigan Athletics' James McCarthy in the back of the head in a Premier League match because, under FIFA rules, as referee Mark Clattenburg had already given a foul against the England man for obstruction, they could take no further action. ...

See the complete story here, courtesy of Reuters.

Kicking Back Comments: For my money Sepp has this one exactly right. There is no reason that a league should not jump in to further sanction a player, even if that player was already dealt with by the match referee. The FA's move to not further sanction Rooney for delivering an elbow to McCarthy is deplorable. Then to further compound the story by saying that they were really just protecting the integrity of the decision of Mark Clattenburg is just cowardice on the part of the FA.

Granted, no referee likes to have such a situation occur that the league has to step in and take further action. In my day it happened to me personally a couple of times. When I got over myself that I should have seen the whole incident and dealt with it differently ... the bigger picture prevailed. That picture was it was better to get it right than to just let it go.

As referees we certainly try to get it right all the time. But alas, sometimes we miss ... not often but we do. At the professional and international level while there is great scrutiny of referees, there is also great opportunity for leagues to stamp out the type of behavior Roo engaged in here. Leagues can also mete out much harsher punishment that a referee ever could, and really put some bite into a sanction.

I'm with Sepp, and say let them. Adding onto a particular sanction to further enforce a point started by a referee does nothing but drive that point home to the owner of the actions, and other players who may consider the same in the future.

Been down this road before ...

Mohamed Bin Hammam: Sepp Blatter has been Fifa president for too long
AFC head hasn't made up his mind concerning the elections

Asian Football Confederation president Mohamed Bin Hammam insists that Sepp Blatter's long reign as Fifa president should come to an end, as it has begun to hurt the credibility of the governing body of world football.

Now the AFC head believes that the exit of the 74-year-old would ensure that Fifa would not be defenceless against accusations of corruption in the organisation. ...

See the full story here, courtesy of goal.com.

Nobel Prize?

The NYT had a very interesting article about Blatter's recent visit to Qatar after their victory in securing the 2022 World Cup.

Most of this article spoke about his recent gaffe regarding homosexuals and just how revealing it was of the man himself.

In addition to this, there was a piece that caught my eye. From the article:

This gaffe may take him even further from the Nobel Peace Prize, which he has been lusting after for years. A Nobel Peace Prize for doling out soccer tournaments under murky circumstances, and occasionally prattling about fair play?

Are you [bleeping] me?

Is this pol really in the hunt for a Nobel Peace Prize?
He's kidding, right?

After poking around though, it would seem he is serious ... or at least he is reported to be, from a variety of sources. (ioL Sport, 7am Kickoff, SI.com)

Reaction to this was fairly visceral:

Excuse me while I vomit in the nearest available bucket.

Quoted one article ... and I share the sentiment.

Maybe we got the reason wrong for the abrupt shift for 2022 to Qatar. It may not have been money after all, but pride.

If Sepp winds up with a Nobel, I would have to say that was the primary reason, not the petrodollars currently under suspicion.