IS it a good day for football? Most football fans and advocates think it is.
In a stunning move, Fifa President Sepp Blatter, who had just won a fifth term in the post, announced his resignation. The man who had called himself “the president of evrybody” folded in the aftermatrh of the Fifa corruption scandal, which is widely believed to have involved him or been encouraged by him, if not largely masterminded by him.
Blatter, who in different times was a sportswriter, a PR man and a wedding singer, had held the position since 1998 and had run it like a sultan, disbursing largesse to small nations to develop their football programs, but also to make sure he gets the votes when it mattered. And thus he has kept himself in power, with a lot of rumbling from the larger world of football but hardly any opposition from the forces that can perpetuate him in power.
Until the recent Fifa scandal that has rocked the football universe. With investigations being undertaken by the powers that be, nine Fifa officials have been arrested in Zurich and indicted by the US government on charges of racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering. More recently, Blatter’s top lieutenant, Jerome Valcke, had been discovered to have had a curious $10-million transaction. And so the path leads closer to Blatt more than ever before.
The man, who said “Why would I step down? That would mean I recognize that I did wrong,” is suddenly eating his words [Blatter Platter] for brunch. Still, despite the big resignation move, he is adamant. “I am a mountain goat that keeps going and going and going. I cannot be stopped. I just keep going.” Don’t those lines remind you of many corrupt officials that we have in the government?
One of the questionable Blatter moves are the choices of Russia and Qatar as World Cup sites in 2018 and 2022, respectively. This is where scents of bribery waft in the air. The Qatar choice, in particular, has raised humanitarian issues after Qatari work forces have been subjected to harsh labor conditions just to build the game venues and infrastructure needed for hosting.
Now there is the possibility that the controversial vote that awarded the World Cup to Qatar could be revoked, according to English Football Association Chairman Greg Dyke. The Qatar Football Association, however, said in a statement that Qatar had been cleared of any wrongdoing by the Fifa-commissioned Garcia report regarding corruption.
In the words of the Orlando Sentinel, “the 79-year old Blatter was…spectacles deep in the ethical muck. Or he was so incompetent he didn’t notice all his lieutenants had acquired Russian villas and ashtrays made from the skulls of migrant workers killed while building 2022 World Cup stadius in Qatar.”
Finally, the deft politician that Blatter was had to accept reality and just recently issued this statement: “While I have a mandate from the membership of Fifa, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football—the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as much as we all do at Fifa.
England, which lost to Russia for the 2018 World Cup hosting, rejoiced at the news. “Fifa Fat Cat Quits,” The Sun said. “Blatt’s yer lot,” said the Daily Mirror. Henry Winter of The Telegraph called Blatter’s resignation as “one of the most beautiful sights in football”.
“Great day for football,” said Bob Guerrero, local football commentator and one of the game’s most passionate fans. “[It’s a] cautionary tale about how hubris, greed and a sense of entitlement can bring you down. Props to the USA justice system for doing this. I hope this leads to a better era of transparency and openness in the game. There seems to have been a deeply instituted culture of corruption in Fifa that must end.”
“The beautiful game deserves leadership that is driven by integrity, love for the sport, and the ideals of honor, fair play and excellence. Not leadership that has taken the world’s most beloved game to associations with corruption and ‘pork barrel politics’.” Thus spake Maricel Pangilinan-Arenas, who describes herself as Football Mama to Joey Arenas, Winger, Kaya Elite and incoming freshie, UP Varsity Football.
“Blatt’s all, folks,” said the headline of The Daily Star.