It could be that the Italian press is exhibiting a bit of belated ‘sour grapes’ - Italy having been originally the bid-to-beat favourite for that tournament. Now the English press could be similarly preparing the ground for the disappointment of losing out in the 2018 bid. But if you, like RTG, were aware that some impropriety had been taking place in FIFA circles for some time, but really weren’t sure of the extent and impact of them, then a little research can reveal some very disturbing facts about FIFA that threaten the very existence of football in the world.
Basically FIFA is a corrupt organisation, above the law, supportive of despots and tyrants, and totally unsuitable to be the guardians of the world’s most popular sport.
“Trust us and you will see confidence will be restored".
Sepp Blatter, FIFA President, October 2010
In RTG’s research, the best and most reliable source of information and facts can be obtained from the investigative journalist, Andrew Jennings. He is the person who is best remembered as being the target of Jack Warner’s, FIFA CONCACAF president, four letter, racist splattered invective in a BBC Panorama programme investigating the 2010 World Cup and Jack Warner’s behaviour in particular. RTG would strongly urge you to check out Mr Jennings’ work. His excellent writing and thoroughly convincing cases were amongst a whole wealth of information available on the web about FIFA and corruption, and it left RTG seething with rage.
This is the summary of the main points that RTG has learnt, but again, we would strongly urge you to do your own research and visit Andrew Jennings’ work in particular.
• Ever since the election of Joao Havelange in 1974 to the FIFA presidency, who bought the votes of delegates funded by the Adidas corporation, almost every election and many business decisions have been tainted by improper financial arrangements.
• FIFA has been effectively run by commercial interests. Adidas in particular, but a host of other so called “partners” eg Coca Cola.
• The public ownership of football has been privatised via the back door and unbeknown to supporters worldwide.
• No surprise that FIFA and other sporting bodies have made their homes in Switzerland. FIFA uses Swiss law to hide salaries, bonuses, perks and expenses paid to FIFA employees. Because FIFA is a ‘non-profit sporting entity’, it is exempt from Swiss anti-corruption laws. However, any employee who finds evidence of corruption, a so called ‘whistle-blower’, can and has been prosecuted by Swiss authorities. No wonder then that Switzerland has long been such a popular haven for Nazis’ and other dictators’ lootings.
• FIFA has consistently given backing to dubious regimes. A dubious regime will quite often install a relative or other favoured courtier as head of their football association. FIFA will support that regime, both morally and fiscally, allowing further looting of that country’s coffers. In return, FIFA’s President gets that country’s vote in future for whatever he needs it for. The notorious Charles Taylor, currently on trial at the Hague for war crimes, installed his son-in-law as Liberian FA chief and he received funds from FIFA. FIFA were particularly busy in the period during the Soviet Union’s break up, when many new associations were created.
• ISL, a company formed from a spin off of Adidas, handled the marketing rights of world cups for many years (amongst other sporting tournaments). ISL collapsed which led to £100 million in losses to FIFA. A previous investigation by Panorama interviewed employees of ISL, who confirmed that the company had paid bribes to FIFA over a period of 20 years.
• The allegations led to some FIFA officials returning money. Others refused and FIFA repaid some money in a secret deal.
• Swiss authorities did investigate ISL between 2005 and 2010. They uncovered $143 million in kick-backs, some connected to FIFA. Proceedings were settled with compensation payments from accused parties without any admission of guilt.
• The company that took over the marketing rights from ISL, Infront, is run by…the nephew of Sepp Blatter!
• Anybody within FIFA who identifies any wrong doing is ostracised and subsequently ousted. In 2002, for example, Michel Zen-Ruffinen, ex-FIFA General Secretary, completed a dossier into financial mismanagement within FIFA. He was immediately sacked. An internal investigation committee by FIFA was stopped by Sepp Blatter, because members broke “confidentiality agreements”.
• When a financial impropriety is identified and highlighted, FIFA’s own Ethics Committee, which has no real authority, is usually given a very limited brief and scope for investigation. Indeed, the UK’s own Sebastian Coe resigned from it, presumably because he realised that it was a vehicle for ‘white washing’ misdemeanours.
• When FIFA’s own auditors revealed that Jack Warner profited by nearly £1 million from ticket re-sales for the 2006 World Cup, they bowed to media pressure and announced that he was to be fined and banned from dealing in tickets in future. Sepp Blatter, a close ally, defended Warner by saying that he wasn’t really responsible because the sales were done through Warner’s son Daryan. Apparently, FIFA insiders claim that the fine, like many others imposed on FIFA officials, will never be paid. Because of Swiss secrecy laws, we’ll never know.
“It could not be evidenced that Mr. Jack Warner had knowledge of the resale of these tickets at a higher price. The resale is certainly forbidden, but the person who did the re-selling is not subject to the FIFA jurisdiction, because it is the son of Jack Warner."
Sepp Blatter, FIFA President, December 2006
• If any FIFA official is investigated by their own country’s authorities, FIFA quickly threatens to ban that country from international competition. This is exactly what happened to Nigeria following the last World Cup. This makes FIFA officials above the law in individual countries – after all, which politician is going to risk the wrath of his/her own people by getting their country isolated from competition?
• You can see the effect of FIFA’s influence here in England where many media commentators have accused the BBC of being unpatriotic because it continues to highlight the stench of corruption within FIFA – supposedly to the detriment of England’s 2018 bid.
• You can also draw inferences of the type of organisation that FIFA is through their employment of a PR agency to cloud issues and help sweep them under the carpet. This agency includes Union Carbide (of Bhopal disaster infamy) and sanction busting oil companies from the apartheid era amongst its clients.
The above are just some of the highlights of what RTG has learnt. As stated earlier, we ask you to do your own research for evidence, with particular reference to Andrew Jennings. But what can be done about it?
Originally, RTG felt that it would take a US senate style political investigation, perhaps by the UN: after all, it was a Senate Investigation Committee which pursued the IOC over the voting scandal involved in awarding the winter Olympics to Salt Lake City. However, following a lot of good words and angered sentiment being expressed, and some good senatorial suggestions, nothing has really changed.
And that’s the thing: politicians appear reluctant to push through reforms at the risk of alienating their own constituents. They have other pressing issues at the moment and, in the UK’s case (and indeed other countries), wouldn’t that be the pot calling the kettle black?
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Now for a bit of humour from The Keeper
The Keeper
....always plays to the whistle
The Keeper wishes to express his full support for Harry Redknapp and his stance against the FA. Harry said he would refuse to do any post-match interviews for the TV if they fined him for his comments regarding Mark Clattenburg following the Spurs v Man United game. The Keeper was all for it if not only because it would have made a welcome change on Match of the Day not to see shifty old Harry twitching away and looking sideways rather than at the interviewer. His more dignified number two, Joe Jordan, would have made a welcome alternative….
…hmm…then again the Keeper was always a big Harry fan.
Far more pleasing on the eye than either Jordan or Redknapp is Linda Pizzuti (31), the new darling of the Kop, and wife of new owner John Henry (61). She has endeared herself to the Liverpool faithful by learning to tweet their songs. When Liverpool came back from the brink against Napoli last week she was seen to tweet, “You’re not singing anymore”. Delighted to see her embracing English football culture in this way, and keen to know more about their new advocate, the Kop faithful were straight back on the tweet with a host of questions. “Hi Linda, who’s your favourite player?” “Linda, great song. What others do you know?” “Linda, you seem like a great girl. What first attracted you to ageing billionaire John Henry?”
Talking of events over the pond, LA Galaxy reached their conference’s play-off final. Or rather, according to the media over here, they were “led” to the final by David Beckham. What Becks actually did was to simply take a corner that led to a goal and some might say that Galaxy skipper, Landon Donovan, could be more accurately described as having led them to victory. But in the world that is the Beckhams and the media in England, that doesn’t necessarily apply. All he has to do is fart and the English media would bottle it up as Eau de Beckham and sell it.
Perhaps most shocking of all last week were revelations about Arsène Wenger having an affair with a blonde French singer over 20 years his junior. The Keeper was hoping that this shocking exposé would lay to rest once and for all those disgusting paedophile songs that some opposing fans sing at The Emirates. That was until it turned out he’d been seeing her for the last 25 years!
