This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/29/sports/soccer/sepp-blatter-fifa-corruption-soccer.html

The article has changed 10 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 5 Version 6
Sepp Blatter Says FIFA Must Police Itself Chief of FIFA Shows No Signs of Political Damage
(about 7 hours later)
ZURICH — Sepp Blatter, the president of world soccer’s governing body, acknowledged the “unprecedented and difficult times” for his organization on Thursday and said it must do a better job of policing itself, but he largely avoided taking responsibility for the actions of “a tiny minority” arrested in a corruption inquiry this week. ZURICH — Soccer’s world governing body will hold a presidential election Friday, two days after a group of its leading officials were charged with corruption, its headquarters were raided and the governments of two countries announced they were investigating more allegations of bribery.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the annual congress of the members of FIFA, the governing body, Mr. Blatter initially struck a somber tone after the arrest of several top soccer officials during a dawn raid at a luxury hotel here on Wednesday. Mr. Blatter, who was not directly implicated in the indictment from the United States Department of Justice (which is seeking extradition of the executives detained on their request) or a separate investigation announced by Swiss authorities, said he knew that many soccer observers “hold me ultimately responsible for the actions and reputation of the global football community, whether it’s the destination of the hosting of a World Cup or a corruption scandal.” But when the voting members of FIFA cast their ballots on Friday, it most likely will be as if nothing happened this week. Sepp Blatter, the publicly embattled leader seeking a fifth term as FIFA president, shows no signs of political damage. Despite a new round of allegations of widespread bribery by some of his top lieutenants, 11 of whom have been provisionally suspended from soccer, Mr. Blatter is expected to handily defeat his only challenger.
He continued: “We, or I, cannot monitor everyone all of the time. If people want to do wrong, they will also try to hide it. But it must also fall to me to be responsible for the reputation of our entire organization, and to find a way to fix things.” On Thursday, in his first public comments since the scandal became public, Mr. Blatter, 79, used a speech opening FIFA’s annual congress on Thursday to deflect responsibility for FIFA’s problems and at the same time suggest he was a man willing and capable of solving them.
Mr. Blatter’s speech provided his first public comments since two FIFA vice presidents, including Jeffrey Webb, the president of the regional confederation that includes the United States, were among the officials roused from their beds by the police on Wednesday. Blatter had skipped several previously scheduled public appearances on Wednesday and Thursday, but he has maintained that he will stand for re-election as planned at the conclusion of Friday’s FIFA Congress. “We, or I, cannot monitor everyone all of the time,” Mr. Blatter said. “If people want to do wrong, they will also try to hide it. But it must also fall to me to be responsible for the reputation of our entire organization, and to find a way to fix things.
“The events of yesterday have cast a long shadow over football and over this week’s Congress,” he said. “Actions of individuals, if proven, bring shame and humiliation on football and demand action and change from us all. “We cannot allow the reputation of FIFA to be dragged through the mud any longer. It has to stop here and now.”
“We cannot allow the reputation of football and FIFA to be dragged through the mud any longer,” Mr. Blatter went on. “It has to stop here and now.” Mr. Blatter is widely expected to win a fifth term on Friday — in a vote only miles from the luxury hotel where Thursday’s arrests took place — in part because of FIFA’s electoral math. The FIFA president is elected by a one-country, one-vote poll of its 209 member federations, making the many smaller countries who support Mr. Blatter an effective counterweight to his unpopularity elsewhere, most notably in Europe.
Some critics, including Michel Platini, the head of European soccer’s governing body, have called for Mr. Blatter, 79, to stand down as president. Mr. Blatter has refused. His speech in a Zurich theater Thursday came amid global criticism — and support — of his leadership. In Russia and Brazil, top officials suggested the United States investigators had sought the arrests to increase American influence in soccer.
The audience at Zurich’s Theater 11, where the ceremony was held, greeted Mr. Blatter with polite applause when he took the stage after a short introduction. Early projections seemed to indicate that Mr. Blatter was likely to soundly defeat his only challenger in the presidential election, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan, but it is difficult to predict how Wednesday’s arrests will affect the voting. Mr. Blatter has given countless speeches during his 17-year career as president of world soccer’s governing body but none quite like the one he tried Thursday. It was a delicate moment but one so significant that Mr. Blatter, who is known for his off-the-cuff comments, was said to have repeatedly rehearsed his remarks in the car on the way to the arena.
European federations, representing the wealthiest leagues and the players who drive the world’s game, continue to oppose Mr. Blatter, as they did before this week’s arrests. Those in Africa, Asia and South America remain his biggest supporters despite persistent revelations of corruption inside the organization. Both the African and Asian federations reiterated their support for Mr. Blatter on Thursday. The final product struck a mixed tone. One part sadness, one part resolve, one part unyielding optimism, Mr. Blatter’s speech urged FIFA and its members to do a better job policing themselves.
Mr. Platini, the president of Europe’s confederation, UEFA, said Thursday that 45 to 46 of its 53 members would vote for Prince Ali. “I will not allow the actions of a few to damage the reputation of FIFA,” he said.
But Mr. Blatter, who won the presidency in 1998 and was elected without opposition in his last two campaigns, is surely counting on the election’s rules to preserve his power. FIFA’s president is elected by a one-country, one-vote system among its 209 member associations. That has allowed Mr. Blatter to use his popularity, the relationships he has cultivated over a 40-year career at FIFA and his ability to deliver millions of dollars in development money as an effective counterweight to his unpopularity in Europe. Mr. Blatter, who was not directly implicated in the indictment from the United States Justice Department (which is seeking extradition of the executives detained on it request) or a separate investigation announced by Swiss authorities into the bidding for the next two World Cups, acknowledged that these are “unprecedented and difficult times” for FIFA. He noted, too, that he is aware many people “hold me ultimately responsible for the actions and reputation of the global football community.”
During his Thursday speech, Mr. Blatter did not directly address the election but indicated, in several different ways, that he believes he is the best person to lead FIFA’s change. “The next few months will not be easy for FIFA,” he said. “I’m sure more bad news may follow. But it is necessary to begin to restore trust in our organization. Let this be the turning point.”
“We will cooperate with the authorities to make sure that anyone involved in wrongdoing, from top to bottom, is discovered and punished,” he said. “There can be no place for corruption of any kind It was difficult to tell how well Mr. Blatter’s message was received – he received polite applause from the crowd at the theater here both before and after the speech – but there has been little indication that a sea change against him had occurred on the eve of the election.
“The next few months will not be easy for FIFA. I’m sure more bad news may follow. But it is necessary to begin to restore trust in our organization. Let this be the turning point.” Mr. Blatter is expected to comfortably defeat his only challenger, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan, once the secret-ballot voting is conducted, just has he has on four previous occasions. Mr. Blatter, who won the presidency in 1998, was elected without opposition in his last two campaigns, but Friday’s vote will not be a similarly unanimous vote of support.
After leading an emergency meeting earlier in the day with representatives from FIFA’s six regional confederations, Mr. Blatter rebuffed a call from Mr. Platini, Europe’s top soccer official, to step down. Michel Platini, the president of European soccer’s governing body, called for Mr. Blatter to step down during an emergency meeting of top officials convened early Thursday and then enthusiastically endorsed Prince Ali.
Mr. Platini insisted he believed that Mr. Blatter could be defeated after being engulfed by the scandal. “Before what happened yesterday, no,” Mr. Platini told reporters. “But after what happened recently, I think enough is enough and a number of people think likewise. There is a radical change in the mind-set of a number of heads of associations.” “After what happened recently, I think enough is enough, and a number of people think likewise,” Mr. Platini told reporters. “There is a radical change in the mind-set of a number of heads of associations.”
Mr. Platini said Prince Ali was qualified to be president, and he seemed to suggest that he had the added virtue of being resistant to corruption. “Prince Ali has all the qualities to be president,” he said. “He is young, he is ambitious, he is a man who can do well. He doesn’t need money; he is a prince.” Mr. Platini predicted Prince Ali would receive “45 of 46” of the 53 European votes, while campaign advisers for Prince Ali often have played up how much support he will receive outside Europe. Mr. Gulati, the head of U.S. Soccer and a member of FIFA’s governing executive committee, has been a supporter of Prince Ali but it remains unclear how many other countries from Concacaf, the regional body for North America, Central America and the Caribbean, will vote against Mr. Blatter.
Mr. Blatter was not among the 14 men indicted in the latest corruption inquiry. In his career, he has always managed to stay above the fray, even as accusations of corruption swirled around the organization that he leads. The African, South American and Asian confederations are largely seen as supporting Mr. Blatter, who would need two-thirds of the votes to win on the first ballot and a simple majority on any ensuing ballots.
On Thursday, the fallout from the scandal continued to reverberate as soccer federations, sponsors and national governments responded to the investigation, and Mr. Blatter’s opponents and supporters jockeyed for position. While the soccer officials here prepared for their congress – other issues under discussion Friday include a controversial proposal from the Palestinian Football Association calling for Israel to be expelled from FIFA – the fallout from Wednesday’s dawn-hour police raid at a luxury hotel continued to ripple. A former top FIFA executive who was indicted, Jack Warner, turned himself in to the police late Wednesday in his native Trinidad, and in Argentina a judge issued arrest warrants for three media and marketing executives names in the indictments.
“President Blatter apologizes for not being able to come today because of the turbulences you have heard about,” said FIFA’s chief medical officer, Michel D’Hooghe of Belgium, Reuters reported, after Mr. Blatter declined to make a previously scheduled appearance at a medical conference on Thursday. Vladimir V. Putin, the president of Russia, criticized the United States for its involvement in the raids, accusing the Department of Justice of intervening outside its jurisdiction by pursuing the case against senior soccer officials, who he noted are not American citizens. Mr. Putin also said that he supported Mr. Blatter’s approach to running global soccer and added that the American investigation appeared to be a blatant attempt to stifle Mr. Blatter’s re-election.
The Asian Football Confederation said on Thursday that it “reiterates its decision” to support Blatter’s candidacy and called for the election to proceed, and it was joined later in the day by the CAF, the governing body of African football, which said in a statement that it was opposed to any postponement. In South America, the reactions were mixed. In Brazil, the host country of the 2014 World Cup and the home of José Maria Marin, the powerful soccer authority who was among the FIFA figures arrested in Zurich, some defenders of Mr. Marin contended that the investigation involved an effort by the United States to gain influence within FIFA. But in neighboring Argentina, the satirical magazine Barcelona captured the prevailing mood with an irony-soaked cover denouncing the American investigation as an example of “Yankee” imperialism. The magazine called the complaint “an obvious assault on a bribery-fueled and sovereign” region.
UEFA has characterized the arrests and investigation as a “disaster” for FIFA that has tarnished the image of soccer. On a commercial level, Wednesday’s arrests prompted some FIFA partners to make statements regarding their relationships. Several sponsors, including Adidas, Coca-Cola and Visa, are calling for soccer’s governing body to change the way it operates — Visa vowed to “reassess” its World Cup sponsorship if soccer’s world governing body did not change its ways — and on Thursday another major World Cup sponsor, Hyundai Motor, also registered its disapproval. The South Korean company said it was “extremely concerned” by the corruption charges.
President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia entered the debate on Thursday, accusing the United States of intervening outside its jurisdiction by pursuing the case against senior FIFA officials, who he noted are not American citizens. The Russian president said that he supported Mr. Blatter’s approach to running global soccer and that the American investigation appeared to be a blatant attempt to stifle Mr. Blatter’s re-election. South Africa denied any wrongdoing on Thursday after the American indictment unsealed Wednesday suggested that a $10 million bribe had helped the country win the right to host the 2010 World Cup. Federal prosecutors have accused Jack Warner, a former FIFA vice president from Trinidad and Tobago, of offering his support for South Africa to the highest bidder, and then using much of the $10 million payout he received for personal use.
Alluding to the former National Security Agency contractor Edward J. Snowden, who has sought asylum in Russia, and to the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, the Russian president said the arrests constituted “another blatant attempt by the United States to extend its jurisdiction to other states.” South Africa’s sports minister, Fikile Mbalula, was quoted by Reuters as saying that the government had yet to receive an indictment from American prosecutors that included a link to South Africans. Mr. Mbalula also said that the 2010 World Cup funds had been accounted for and audited and that “no such amount has been found,” according to Reuters.
FIFA sponsors, including Adidas, Coca-Cola and Visa, are calling for soccer’s governing body to change the way it operates, and on Thursday, a World Cup sponsor, Hyundai Motor, also registered its disapproval. The South Korean company said it was “extremely concerned” by the corruption charges. According to the indictment, when FIFA was considering which country should host the 2010 World Cup, Mr. Warner sent a relative to a Paris hotel room to collect a briefcase filled with cash in $10,000 stacks from a committee official for the South African bid. (Egyptian officials have recently asserted that FIFA executives solicited a multimillion-dollar bribe to secure the bid, and that Egypt, perhaps alone among the bidders, refused to pay.)
Mr. Blatter has been at FIFA for 40 years, the past 17 of them as president. Although he has been praised for extending soccer’s global reach, he has also been criticized for an authoritarian style and for fostering an opaque institutional culture that some critics say allowed corruption to thrive. It is stories such as these that have led to a decaying public trust in FIFA, with much of the vitriol from fans directed at Mr. Blatter, who has been at FIFA in various positions for 40 years. Although he has earned praise for expanding soccer’s global reach and increasing its financial reserves, he has also been criticized for not working harder to create transparency in an organization that now has a cash reserve of more than $1 billion.
South Africa denied any wrongdoing on Thursday after it was reported that the American indictment suggested that a $10 million bribe had helped the country be named host for the 2010 World Cup. Federal prosecutors have accused Jack Warner, a committee member from Trinidad and Tobago and a former FIFA vice president, of offering his vote to the highest bidder, and then using much of the $10 million payout from South Africa for personal use. In his speech, Mr. Blatter did offer a glancing blow toward acknowledging FIFA’s shortcomings – the week’s events “demand action and change from us all,” he said – but he did not put forth contrition. Instead, amid a backdrop of corruption and conflict, he chose to focus on a message of purity.
South Africa’s sports minister, Fikile Mbalula, was quoted by Reuters as saying that the government had yet to receive an indictment from American prosecutors that included a link to South Africans. The minister also said that the 2010 World Cup funds had been accounted for and audited and that “no such amount has been found,” according to Reuters. Those who work in soccer, he said, do so “not for greed, not for exploiting, not for power, but because of the love of the game.”
According to the indictment, when FIFA was considering which country should host the 2010 World Cup, Mr. Warner sent a relative to a Paris hotel room to collect a briefcase filled with cash in $10,000 stacks from a committee official for the South African bid.