It's only a game...

[ayepatz]

Former Liverpool boss Bill Shankly once said:

'Some people believe football is a matter of life and death, I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that.'

I'd love to hear his views on this lot:-

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/may/28/fifa-crisis-blatter-calls-resign-sponsors-disappointment

Does anybody else appreciate the irony of Diego Maradona as a talking-head on the corruption scandal?

[wabashcr]

Maradona is the last person we need to hear from about this, even though he's correct.

I'd love to see UEFA boycott, but I don't think it will have much impact in the short term. Blatter already has his coalition of Africa, Asia and South America, and couldn't care less about UEFA at this point. UEFA would never boycott a competition, especially given that the next two on the calendar (Confederations Cup and World Cup) are both scheduled to be held in a UEFA member nation.

Most of the nations and federations that back Blatter seem destined to milk the current arrangement for as much as they can, before it inevitably crashes. It's not hard to imagine a future where Europe (and to a lesser extent North America) dictate world football, and marginalize a lot of the smaller nations. That's why it's so evident that the cleanup will never come from within FIFA.

If Blatter and most of the Ex Com can avoid being arrested or otherwise caught up in this scandal, it may take an extraordinary breakaway to enact any significant change. I'm not sure UEFA or its member federations are competent enough to make something work along those lines. Could get very ugly after the next World Cup.

[omartout]

The whole thing is a disappointment but not surprising. Just like every other major "non profit" sports association it all becomes one big money vacuum. If people stopped going to matches FIFA would be done. Teams should try and organize matches without the help of FIFA. Good old fashioned matches, no broadcasting and no sponsorship. Very unlikely, just a thought.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ayepatz]

Most of the nations and federations that back Blatter seem destined to milk the current arrangement for as much as they can, before it inevitably crashes. It's not hard to imagine a future where Europe (and to a lesser extent North America) dictate world football, and marginalize a lot of the smaller nations. That's why it's so evident that the cleanup will never come from within FIFA.

I agree, and it would be a shame if the smaller nations were to end up suffering because of all this.

But I simply cannot believe that Blatter isn't involved. The UK press call him Captain Teflon, as no scandal ever seems to stick to him, even my favourite, where he suggested they could improve attendances at women's football matches by getting the players to wear "tighter shorts", seems to have been forgotten!

Even if it turns out he's not involved, he certainly can't claim to be running things smoothly. lol

My opinion is that he should go, and let a new boss clean up Fifa's mess from within, rather than let Uefa get involved.

[wabashcr]

But I simply cannot believe that Blatter isn't involved. The UK press call him Captain Teflon, as no scandal ever seems to stick to him, even my favourite, where he suggested they could improve attendances at women's football matches by getting the players to wear "tighter shorts", seems to have been forgotten!

Even if it turns out he's not involved, he certainly can't claim to be running things smoothly. lol

My opinion is that he should go, and let a new boss clean up Fifa's mess from within, rather than let Uefa get involved.

Of course he's involved. I'm sure he's been smart enough to insulate himself with enough layers of underlings, middle-men and proxies, that actually linking him to any corruption will prove incredibly difficult. The US justice department sounds resolute, and they certainly have the resources to keep digging and pursuing as long as they choose to. They've shown a propensity to spare no expense chasing high-profile targets. And when they set their sights on someone, they almost always get their man.

I think it's pretty evident they're hoping this first round of arrests will uncover evidence to help build a case against Sepp. But that can take awhile, and in the meantime there's nothing to stop him from carrying on the way he always has. I'd love to see FIFA come to their senses and oust him, but when you have confederation presidents comparing him to Nelson Mandela and Jesus Christ, that just won't happen I'm afraid.

[ayepatz]

I'd love to see FIFA come to their senses and oust him, but when you have confederation presidents comparing him to Nelson Mandela and Jesus Christ, that just won't happen I'm afraid.

Wow.

Gives me an idea for a new vitola - the "Blatter". Teflon wrapper, dodgy binder, rotten filler. Impossible to draw, and a stubborn refusal to burn.

[Ken Gargett]

is this the biggest non-surprise story of the decade. but good on the investigators pursuing it.

as for maradona, granted an utter grub, but i was living in england at the time of the 'hand of god' and have rarely enjoyed a sporting moment more. almost the equivalent of an ashes win. especially the english outrage. and don't forget in the same game, he scored one of the greatest goals ever seen.

before our much-loved pommy brothers blow up about it, yes, he cheated in a sport to gain an advantage. like a squillion other competitors at every level. it was not some long planned deliberate drugs use/cheating scheme but a spur of the moment grabbing an advantage. still cheating but sadly, happens all the time. i certainly don't condone it but...

was it any different from any player exaggerating the extent of a tackle to draw a free or penalty? a cricket team appealling for an lbw they don't genuinely believe is out? a rugby player deliberately edging offside? all cheating but happens all the time. what mattered here was the outcome, although as the score was 2-0, it really didn't matter at all.

[CaptainQuintero]

I'd love to see UEFA stand up and boycott the FIFA activities until Blatter is gone, no European teams and the big sponsored pull out of the tournaments and FIFA in it's current shameful state of done for.

It's disgusting to watch the other federations give him a standing ovation today.

[ayepatz]

as for maradona, granted an utter grub, but i was living in england at the time of the 'hand of god' and have rarely enjoyed a sporting moment more. almost the equivalent of an ashes win. especially the english outrage. and don't forget in the same game, he scored one of the greatest goals ever seen.

This was voted the No. 1 Greatest Moment in Scottish Football a few years back, ahead of Archie Gemmell's goal against Holland in Argentina 78. We found it hilarious too, Ken.

[Ken Gargett]

This was voted the No. 1 Greatest Moment in Scottish Football a few years back, ahead of Archie Gemmell's goal against Holland in Argentina 78. We found it hilarious too, Ken.

i still remember being in the underground and seeing that someone had paid for an entire billboard attacking the bloke. i nearly fell on the tracks i laughed so hard.

having had a crack at our much-loved pommy brethren, it is perhaps time to turn our attention to another little muddy island at the other end of the world - NZ (i really hope rob is already on that plane to europe). although one agrees it would have been better if the underarm bowling incident had never occurred, it did expose the monumental hypocrisy of the kiwis, with the greatest respect to our much loved kiwi brethren.

around the same time, if i have things correct in the memory, andy hayden's book came out detailing how he'd deliberately taken a dive in a lineout to draw a penallty to allow them to win the last game in the grand slam tour. he was hailed as brilliant and a genius and a hero to the kiwis.

explain to me how cleverly (the thing that pissed me off most about the underarm ball was that it was so unnecessary - we were always going to win that game) exploiting the rules is the crime of the century while deliberately cheating is hailed as a masterstroke?

not only that, this incident gave the moribund kiwis a reason to get out of bed in the morning - to whinge even more at us - we dragged them out of their 50s stupor and have never received any credit or gratitude for it. shame nz shame!

[tmac77]

Finally someone has the guts to stand up to FIFA. The sad part is that it took the Us Dept of Justice to do it as all the major football nations have stood idly by for decades doing absolutely nothing. Don't get me wrong I am not bashing the USA here. Quite the opposite and I send huge kudos to the US DA.

[wabashcr]

I'd love to see UEFA stand up and boycott the FIFA activities until Blatter is gone, no European teams and the big sponsored pull out of the tournaments and FIFA in it's current shameful state of done for.

It's disgusting to watch the other federations give him a standing ovation today.

I'm not sure the internal power struggle between the handful of big revenue generating UEFA nations and the other 50 or so members would be conducive to UEFA uniting around such a dramatic action. And then there's Platini, who turned out to be in the bag for Qatar all along. I have my doubts about UEFA playing much of a role in the solution, and that's a shame.

I worry about the future of the international game. The big European clubs would be happy to abolish international football altogether. FIFA and UEFA are the only forces keeping the big clubs from completely overtaking the game on all levels. A power vacuum, or even just a weakened FIFA, would surely embolden the big clubs to grab even more power for themselves. That can't be seen as a good thing.

[Dimmers]

I love that the USA, the one nation on earth that doesn't really give a crap about football, is the one that has the guts to stick it to FIFA!

And amid the corruption scandal, don't forget the blood on FIFA's hands....over 1,200 workers have died in Qatar to date, and this number is expected to almost quadruple by 2022 on a few accounts. Just disgraceful.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/05/27/a-body-count-in-qatar-illustrates-the-consequences-of-fifa-corruption/

[Bartolomeo]

FIFA is a joke and will continue to be as long as Blatter is in power......and BTW he will be re-elected tomorrow too

[tmac77]

FIFA is a joke and will continue to be as long as Blatter is in power......and BTW he will be re-elected tomorrow too

The only real hope is that someone already in custody turns evidence to implicate that **** Blatter.

[ayepatz]

i still remember being in the underground and seeing that someone had paid for an entire billboard attacking the bloke. i nearly fell on the tracks i laughed so hard.

having had a crack at our much-loved pommy brethren, it is perhaps time to turn our attention to another little muddy island at the other end of the world - NZ (i really hope rob is already on that plane to europe). although one agrees it would have been better if the underarm bowling incident had never occurred, it did expose the monumental hypocrisy of the kiwis, with the greatest respect to our much loved kiwi brethren.

around the same time, if i have things correct in the memory, andy hayden's book came out detailing how he'd deliberately taken a dive in a lineout to draw a penallty to allow them to win the last game in the grand slam tour. he was hailed as brilliant and a genius and a hero to the kiwis.

explain to me how cleverly (the thing that pissed me off most about the underarm ball was that it was so unnecessary - we were always going to win that game) exploiting the rules is the crime of the century while deliberately cheating is hailed as a masterstroke?

not only that, this incident gave the moribund kiwis a reason to get out of bed in the morning - to whinge even more at us - we dragged them out of their 50s stupor and have never received any credit or gratitude for it. shame nz shame!

For the Scots, I'm pretty sure the fact that Maradona cheated made it all the sweeter. lol

It would be great to see the English laugh it off in public à la Glenn McGrath and Kiwi umpire Billy Bowden in 2005:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w610pbZyE7M

[ayepatz]

......and BTW he will be re-elected tomorrow too

I fervently hope not, but I fear you might be right.

[CaptainQuintero]

I love that the USA, the one nation on earth that doesn't really give a crap about football, is the one that has the guts to stick it to FIFA!

 

And amid the corruption scandal, don't forget the blood on FIFA's hands....over 1,200 workers have died in Qatar to date, and this number is expected to almost quadruple by 2022 on a few accounts. Just disgraceful.

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/05/27/a-body-count-in-qatar-illustrates-the-consequences-of-fifa-corruption/

I think that's why they did it, although the Swiss are running an investigation too, the US really doesn't have much to lose. Just looking at how FIFA treat the English FA after they tried standing up to Blatter is enough to make other not want to try.

The fact that the majority of FAs support Blatter ready shows how deep the corruption goes, they corrupt don't want to lose their big corrupt bosses outside they get no more kickbacks!

Shameful display right across the world, only a handful of FAs showing any level of decency.

UEFA do hold massive power though, any world cup would fail without its nations and FIFA need each world cup to finance them for the following 4 years.

[wabashcr]

I think that's why they did it, although the Swiss are running an investigation too, the US really doesn't have much to lose. Just looking at how FIFA treat the English FA after they tried standing up to Blatter is enough to make other not want to try.

The fact that the majority of FAs support Blatter ready shows how deep the corruption goes, they corrupt don't want to lose their big corrupt bosses outside they get no more kickbacks!

Shameful display right across the world, only a handful of FAs showing any level of decency.

UEFA do hold massive power though, any world cup would fail without its nations and FIFA need each world cup to finance them for the following 4 years.

Worth noting that the US federation has been just as spineless in standing up to corruption as any other nations. Our federation just doesn't have any pull in the US government. We don't have sporting ministers campaigning and working on behalf of US Soccer. Most in the justice department probably have no idea who Sunil Gulati is (president of USSF).

Also worth noting that the US seems to be the only nation prominently extending jurisdiction around the world to prosecute financial crimes committed by foreign nationals. I understand the justice department's justification (US financial institutions, US currency, etc), but it still feels like a bit of a reach to me. I don't think you'll hear many complaints on this issue, since it seems pretty popular to go after FIFA corruption. But I imagine more people (and countries) would have a pretty big issue with this if the offenders worked for just about any other organization.

[Mr.T]

It's so sad to see all of this unfold. These guys have been above any kind of accountability for far too long. I would go back before Blatter and dig up wherever Joao Havleange is hiding out because I have little doubt a lot happened under his watch too. I hope they clean this sham of an international football governing system up.

[CaptainQuintero]

 

Worth noting that the US federation has been just as spineless in standing up to corruption as any other nations.  Our federation just doesn't have any pull in the US government.  We don't have sporting ministers campaigning and working on behalf of US Soccer.  Most in the justice department probably have no idea who Sunil Gulati is (president of USSF).

 

Also worth noting that the US seems to be the only nation prominently extending jurisdiction around the world to prosecute financial crimes committed by foreign nationals.  I understand the justice department's justification (US financial institutions, US currency, etc), but it still feels like a bit of a reach to me.  I don't think you'll hear many complaints on this issue, since it seems pretty popular to go after FIFA corruption.  But I imagine more people (and countries) would have a pretty big issue with this if the offenders worked for just about any other organization.

I agree, it seems to have been a domino effect too; the serious fraud office in the UK has opened an investigation alongside the US and Swiss one now

[JohnS]

FIFA is a joke and will continue to be as long as Blatter is in power......and BTW he will be re-elected tomorrow too

Exactly how did this happen after this scandal? You were right...he got in for another term because obviously he is committed to lining pockets!

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/05/29/football/fifa-congress-corruption-case-blatter-election/index.html

My reading of history reminds me of Julius Caesar...as he did similar things until those under him started to miss out on benefits and he ended up with 23 knife wounds in his back!

However, we know how these investigations will go. First the little guys get taken down until the support from underneath is not there, and then the big guys at the top fall...a bit like taking down a big tree!

[Ken Gargett]

A Twitter poll has revealed that football fans would like to see Arsenal's Gunnersaurus as the next FIFA president, with Alexis Sanchez 2nd.

[ayepatz]

And Blatter won.