Timing is everything

A FIFA Fiasco: Accusations Lead To Investigations, An Election On The Brink

Soccer’s global governing body, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, said it is opening an investigation into claims that its president, Joseph “Sepp” Blatter, knew of alleged payments made to influence a coming election to lead the organization, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The probe into Blatter stems from allegations made by Qatar’s Mohamed bin Hammam, who is Blatter’s main rival for the FIFA presidency. ...

See the whole article here, courtesy of the WSJ.

Kicking Back Comments: Well. Let's just see how many friends Sepp has in other National Associations. Is this the final straw? If not, they might as well plan to bury him under the headquarters in Zurich as it would see that will be the only way he will be forced leave.

Deny and make counter allegations

FIFA executive committee member Worawi plans legal action over bribery accusations

BANGKOK, Thailand — FIFA executive committee member Worawi Makudi says he will file charges against former English Football Association chief David Triesman for making bribery accusations.

Worawi, also head of the Football Association of Thailand, has denied Triesman’s accusations that he demanded the television rights to a proposed Thailand-England friendly in exchange for supporting England’s bid to host the 2018 World Cup. ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of the Washington Post.

Kicking Back Comments: You had to see this one coming. In my opinion, the one thing some of these FIFA execs like more than money and power, is their pride. I am predicting that this suit will go nowhere. It is just a way to create more confusion to distract us from watching an organization circling the drain.

There way be a couple of problems with the FA's stand against FIFA however. First, the FA itself is bogged down in corruption charges. Second, the FA alone can not change FIFA, it needs help. An interesting article is here that discusses these points.

Is there another brave national organization in the world willing to do the right thing? The time is now, as the FIFA presidential elections approaches. 

You know it's bad when ...

... The Economist is picking up on how corrupt FIFA is. Check out this article, it is certainly worth the read! Personally, I think they are onto something as it would certainly make the process more transparent.

Time to blow the whistle and put the right to host the World Cup on eBay

May 12th 2011 | from the print edition

WHEN it comes to long, rancorous and pointless rows, few things are in the same league as the world’s favourite sport. (Note to American readers: we speak of the game you call soccer.) Arguments rage for days—decades—after the final whistle. Was the ball over the goal-line? (Note to German readers: maybe not at Wembley in 1966, yes in Bloemfontein in 2010.) Was that sending-off deserved, or a gross miscarriage of justice? Was the referee brilliant, blind or bribed? ...

See the full article here, courtesy of The Economist.

FIFA ... Corruption ... Again ... I'm Shocked ... LOL

Special thanks to Dr. Rice for bringing this one forward.

Six From FIFA Are Accused in Bribery Case

Soccer’s world governing body, which has little international oversight and has long faced charges of corruption, found itself embattled again Tuesday when six of its top officials were accused of participating in a bribery scandal related to bids for the 2018 and the 2022 World Cups.

The news was particularly embarrassing and perhaps threatening for FIFA’s president, Sepp Blatter. Though not accused of corruption himself, Blatter faces re-election next month as his reputation continues to suffer and the organization he runs continues to be plagued with accusations of illicit behavior. ...

See the rest of the story here, courtesy of the NYT.

Kicking Back Comments: I sure hope someone wakes up and takes some action in June for the FIFA presidential elections. We have gone past silly, into ludicrous. Reminds me of that bit from SpaceBalls. A clip showing how silly ludicrous speed is, can be found below and here. Please draw your own conclusions about art imitating FIFA life.

Not surprised in the least

FIFA's Jack Warner Accused of Seeking England World Cup Bid Favours

(WFI) The leaders of England’s failed bid to host the 2018 World Cup were asked by FIFA vice-president Jack Warner to pay for an education centre in his native Trinidad during the bid process.

The Times newspaper alleges that Warner twice asked England’s World Cup bid leaders about funding for facilities on the island, in London in October 2009 and again while a high-profile delegation visited Trinidad at the time of a Caribbean Football Union dinner last February. ...

See the whole story here, from World Football Insider.

Kicking Back comments: Representing CONCACAF with style since 1983. For the record, I'll take Chuck Blazer any day of the week and twice on Sunday over Jack Warner.

Another investigation into FIFA's actions

Fifa faces investigation into Burma business deal

Fifa is the subject of an investigation by the Swiss state authorities over allegations that its financial dealings with Burma may have broken international sanctions.

The Myanmar Times, a newspaper in the pocket of Burma's junta, is said to have reported last December that the construction firm Max Myanmar has been contracted to build a stadium that Fifa funds will help to pay for. ...

See the complete story here, courtesy of guardian.co.uk.

This one is not a joke

Warner in new World Cup 'ticket scandal'

Sepp Blatter will meet the new Football Association chairman, David Bernstein, tomorrow, to try to secure England's vote for the Fifa presidency, but his visit has come at the worst time in terms of his efforts to clean up the game. Yesterday, fresh claims emerged over the controversial Fifa vice-president Jack Warner's alleged involvement in a World Cup ticket scandal. ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of The Independent.

Kicking Back Comments: This does not help Blatter in his FIFA presidency run. This is now the second time Warner has been caught in a World Cup ticket scandal. First time was back in 2006 when he was reprimanded by FIFA. Glad to see Jack's continuing commitment to rid the world game of corruption.

Instant replay?

Kicking Back Comments: Take a look at the story below ... it is actually pretty interesting. The first half rails about the FIFA presidential elections and how corrupt they are. Nothing new there folks.

The second part however has some quotes from various EPL coaches and a fan. What astounds me in reading these and doing further research on the topic, is there seems to be an idea that things will be made "right" by the use of replay and other technology.

Now, I have stated that I personally am not a fan of replay or goal line technology. Tools to help referees communicate batter (e.g. radios), you bet, I am a BIG fan of that. Anything beyond that puts us on the slippery slope however. I am failing to see however why the use of technology corrects all THE game's "wrongs" as seen by ... well just about everyone.

One analogy is in the NFL where review is used fairly sparingly. Are we really going to allow Sir Alex and his ilk to openly challenge a referee decision by (as the NFL does) tossing a red flag into the pitch? To what end? He will then argue THAT decision if it does not go his way, as he generally does today. Note further, this is for the "clear" incidents ... but as we know, THE game is generally a world of grey when it comes to Law 12.

Long story short, technology is a wonderful thing that can solve many problems as it has in general society and industry. Comments from the below article continue to solidify the though in me that the use of such technology to "assist" in adjudication of a match will cause more problems, and not solve the one it was intended to solve. A classic case of the law of unintended consequences.

Alan Green: Fifa will keep on stalling over video evidence

Late last week the President of the Asian Football Confederation, Mohammed Bin Hammam, announced that he’d be standing against Sepp Blatter in the Fifa elections on June 1. I wouldn’t get your hopes up.

For a start, he’s so much against the head of world football that he campaigned on Blatter’s behalf in the last two elections and, far from delivering a radical and detailed plan to re-design Fifa — an essential you’d think — and the sport as a whole, Bin Hammam’s announcement was couched only in vague promises. ...

See the complete story here, courtesy of the Belfast Telegraph.

Presidential Politics

World Football in Focus - Warner the Kingmaker in FIFA Presidency Battle

(WFI) Controversial CONCACAF president Jack Warner has emerged as the key powerbroker in the battle to win the FIFA presidency.

Warner controls 35 of the 208 federations who will decide the next FIFA president at its congress in Zurich in June, and sources with knowledge of FIFA politics have indicated that he is the key figure in the electoral race. CONCACAF have indicated this week that they will likely vote as a bloc. ...

See the full article here, courtesy of World Football Insider.

Kicking Back Comments: My favorite quote in the article is this:

In a nutshell, Bin Hammam proposes giving huge amounts of FIFA power to confederation heads. The plan, according to one FIFA insider, is “to appeal to the vanity of confederation heads, such as Warner.”

Just classic stuff. What was that tweet from @fakesepp? Oh yeah.

What an endorsement!!

As some may know Mohamed bin Hammam is ready to take on Sepp Blatter against in June for the presidency of FIFA.

There may be some skeletons in his closet however that may be an issue. From Guardian:

FIFA EX-COM VP Chung Mong-joon stating that Bin Hammam represented "a serious lack of transparency, democracy and rule of law". "I am afraid that he behaves like a mentally ill man …"

... and a ringing endorsement from a friend.

... standing by Bin Hammam in 2009: Indonesia's FA president Nurdin Halid – twice allowed by Bin Hammam's Asian Football Confederation to run his FA from inside prison while serving time for embezzling humanitarian aid. Halid: "Mr Hammam has my full support. His vision is second to none!"

I don't know what is worse. The devil you know, or the one you don't.

See the whole story here, courtesy of  guardian.co.uk.

Slow on the uptake?

Fifa denies it was slow to deal with fixing fears

Fifa has denied being slow to react to fears that two international friendly matches were being targeted by match fixers.

The games between Bolivia and Latvia and Estonia and Bulgaria are now the subject of an investigation by the world governing body, who have opened disciplinary proceedings against six match officials.

Officials from the Estonian FA had alerted Fifa and Uefa to their concerns over the organisation of the games two weeks before the fixtures were played in Turkey on 9 February. The games went ahead and a reported €5m (£4.3m) was gambled on the Estonian match, a 2-2 draw. Industry insiders have suggested the "over two-and-a-half goal market" as the key area in a gamble originating in the Far East. ...

Full story continues here, courtesy of The Independent.

Not far enough ...

Love of money endangering game: Pele

Pele, Brazil's greatest footballer, said he believed high salaries and greedy players were a danger to the modern game.

See the whole story here, courtesy of Reuters.

Kicking Back's comments: He is right on several fronts, but does not go far enough. Love of money is also driving THE games caretakers in some cases to do not what is for the good of the game, but for what is good for a very privileged few.

Gone are the days of cheering for a home team made of folks from your hometown. Note this is not an issue unique to soccer at all. Big name talent, here today, gone tomorrow, for another city and a bigger paycheck.

One place you do see "homegrown" heroes is in refereeing. These few folks that make it to "the show" are local heroes to those who take the time to know who they are, and reflect on what they have accomplished.

For me these folks have names like Hasek, Socha, Bratsis, DiPlacido, Dias, Mauro, Resendes, Bennett, Woo and Supple. You don't see these folks trotting off to another city for a bigger paycheck or fancy new sports car. These folks are here to stay in the hometown they helped forge. For me, these are household names that serve as a continued reminder of what can be achieved, right around the block, when you really put your mind to it. Greatness need not change its zip code.

Hometown heroes all, and true defenders of THE game to the last.

What are the odds?

Fifa investigates possible match fixing after seven goals - all penalties - are scored in two friendly internationals

The credibility of friendly international matches and Fifa’s ability to adequately regulate them is facing a fresh challenge after serious suspicions of match fixing were raised over two games held on Wednesday last week in Turkey.

Fifa confirmed to Telegraph Sport on Tuesday that it was examining whether there were suspicious betting patterns surrounding Bolivia’s 2-1 defeat of Latvia and the 2-2 draw between Estonia and Bulgaria.

The games were played consecutively on neutral territory at the Mardan Stadium in Antalya. All seven goals were penalties, an outcome described by one bookmaking source as “freakishly unlikely”. One of the penalties was ordered to be retaken after the first kick was missed. ...

See the complete story here, courtesy of The Telegraph.

Kicking Back's Comments: While I rail against FIFA for its corruption, this incident, if proven true, will bear the same fruit. It is unconscionable that one who is charged with care for THE game could act in such a manner. While I am willing to wait for the inquiry to complete to cast that stone, it is difficult to believe that every single goal was scored by a legitimate penalty (in regular time mind you). While I do believe in the "black swan" or "outliers", experience tells me otherwise here.

If shown to be true, this referee, the assistants and 4th official should not be allowed to referee again, ever, for any association. Any promoter should face a similar fate via what ever legal mechanisms exist.

The Outrage!

FIFA Executive Committee Member Lashes Out at World Cup Bidding Process

Outspoken FIFA executive committee member Chuck Blazer has lashed out at FIFA’s handling of the process last December that led to Qatar’s winning of its bid to host the 2022 World Cup, while at the same time praising the Gulf state’s successful bid campaign.

In an interview with World Soccer Magazine’s March edition quoted by World Football Insider, Blazer charged that the recommendations of FIFA’s five man inspection team “were ignored completely” and said that there was a lack of willingness in the executive committee to discuss deficiencies raised in their reports.

See the full story here, from the bleacher report.

Kicking Back Comments: Chuck, where were you when we needed you? While I'm sure you kept the hope alive for the US at least through the 1st round of voting, where was all this outrage when the pressure was on FIFA to delay the vote? Why wait until now to rail against the seemingly corrupt body you are a part of? Was it conscience as this interview hit too close to home with accusations about what payoffs were being made? Was it after receiving permission from FIFA as questions still swirl about how odd a result it is for Qatar to host 2022? Was it just because the USA was dismissed out of hand based on the inspection reports as you stated? Why Chuck? Why speak up now when it is plainly too late?

Exorcises its Devils?

Kicking Back comments: While I believe this good news for the sport that some involved in the World Cup pay to play scandal have been dealt with, I hardly feel that FIFA has rid itself of all its issues.

It's a good start to be sure, but one they were forced to take with some superior investigative journalism.

Adamu Finished as FIFA Exorcises its Devils; Temarii Appeal Rejected

(WFI) Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii, the FIFA Executive committee members caught out by the Sunday Times bungs sting, have had their appeals against their bans rejected by FIFA. ...

Adamu and Temarii were caught on film last October requesting improper inducements in return for their votes for the hosting of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

FIFA’s appeal committee today upheld three and one year bans handed out by the organisation’s ethics committee in November. ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of World Football Insider.

Appealing for a call ...

Fifa opens 'corruption' hearing appeals

Fifa has begun hearing appeals by five officials suspended after allegations of corruption during the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding races.

Executive committee members Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii were barred from voting by Fifa's ethics committee.

Nigeria's Adamu has challenged a three-year football ban for seeking bribes from reporters who posed as lobbyists. ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of the BBC.

... and why did the BBC put the word corruption in quotes? It is the charge levied on these folks. Call it what it is!

One flew from the cuckoo's nest

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — A top German lawyer has resigned from FIFA's ethics commission in protest at the world football body's apparent failure to tackle alleged corruption in its ranks.

Guenter Hirsch wrote in a letter to ethics commission president Claudio Sulser that FIFA appeared unwilling to deal with growing problems. The 67-year-old former president of Germany's highest appeals court said FIFA showed "no real interest" in trying to clean up the organization.

"The events of the past few weeks have raised and strengthened the impression that responsible persons in FIFA have no real interest in playing an active role in resolving, punishing and avoiding violations against ethic regulations of FIFA," Hirsch wrote in the letter, according to the German DPA news agency on Sunday. ...

See the full story here, courtesy of USA Today.

Kicking Back comments:

Mr. Hirsch is not just another pol who is resigning in fear of being discovered in some wrongdoing. He is the real deal and the former president of the highest court in the country of Germany. Frankly neither are some of these other folks that comprise the committee. Take the USA representative Burton K. Haimes, a Yale grad with a LL.B. and LL.M. and currently a partner at Orrick. How about Robert Torres, Chief Justice of the Unified Courts of Guam. If some of these folks are leaving, it should give FIFA great pause, as it would seem one of the few places that the organization has people of such pedigree. Notably the chair of the ethics committee, Claudio Sulser, apparently has no such creditably as a professional beyond his tremendous career as a striker. FIFA must believe that a former striker is better equipped to handle ethics matters than a man who has served at or on a country's highest court.


My question is, who is next? 

I promise this time ...

Sepp Blatter proposes Fifa anti-corruption committee

Fifa president Sepp Blatter says he wants to set up an anti-corruption committee to police world football's governing body.

The move comes after allegations of corruption dogged Fifa throughout the bidding process and voting for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

Blatter said: "This committee will strengthen our credibility and give us a new image in terms of transparency.

"I will take care of it personally, to ensure there is no corruption at Fifa." ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of the BBC.

Kicking Back's comments:

All I can say is that I hope he is serious, and this committee has some teeth. It is my opinion the international game can not handle another scandal on the scale that we just saw for the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

A textbook definition

Kicking Back Comments:

willful blindness. Deliberate avoidance of knowledge of a crime, esp. by failing to make a reasonable inquiry about suspected wrongdoing despite being aware that it is highly probable. • A person acts with willful blindness, for example, by deliberately refusing to look inside an unmarked package after being paid by a known drug dealer to deliver it. Willful blindness creates an inference of knowledge of the crime in question. See Model Penal Code § 2. [Cases: Criminal Law 20, 314. C.J.S. Criminal Law §§ 31-33, 35-39, 700; Negligence § 913.]

BLACK'S LAW DICTIONARY 1630 (8th ed. 2004)

FIFA's Sepp Blatter Denies World Cup Corruption, Says England Is Bad Loser

FIFA President Sepp Blatter said there’s no proof to support media allegations of corruption in the award of World Cups to Russia and Qatar, Swiss weekly Weltwoche reported. He also said England was a bad loser.

FIFA, soccer’s ruling body, has tightened its accounting and now follows International Financial Reporting Standards principles, making corruption “simply impossible,” he told the magazine.

The executive also criticized the reaction of England, whose bid executives and media complained after losing out to Russia in the bid for 2018, Weltwoche said. England lost in the first round of balloting with just two votes. ...

Full story continues here, courtesy of Bloomberg.

The gloves are coming off

FIFA chiefs out of The Dorchester

Boris Johnson has taken revenge on Sepp Blatter and the other FIFA delegates who destroyed England’s bid to host the World Cup by kicking them out of London’s Dorchester hotel for the 2012 Olympic Games.

FIFA president Mr Blatter and his team had been invited to stay in exclusive £1,000-a-night suites at the five-star hotel for more than a week during the Olympics. ...

Full story continues here, courtesy of Mail Online.