By Andrew Warshaw in Marrakesh
December 19 – FIFA will publish the investigative report by its former chief investigator Michael Garcia into the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups that were awarded to Russia and Qatar. But president Sepp Blatter said there will be no revote.
With FIFA’s executive committee meeting finishing earlier than expected this morning, members released very few details as they left. However, it soon became clear FIFA was going to publish the report “where legally possible after current investigations are completed it will be published,” said one source. While FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke said to Insideworldfootball: “Wait for the press conference. It was a very good meeting, everyone spoke with one voice. There was no vote.”
As the press conference began FIFA released a statement by Blatter on its website confirming that the executive committee had unanimously agreed to publish the report “in appropriate form” following a report from its Domenico Scala, chairman of the independent audit and compliance committee.
Blatter said that the independent legal advice Scala had commissioned in compiling his report also “supports the view that there are no legal grounds to revoke the Executive Committee’s decision on the award of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.”
Turning to the topic of the former head of the investigatory arm of the ethics process by Michael Garcia, Blatter says: “The work over the past two years of the investigatory committee led by Mr. Garcia has played a valuable role in ensuring that FIFA rules are upheld and has resulted in a series of sanctions against individuals. Although we are disappointed that our work with Mr. Garcia has ended this way, I want to make it clear that our commitment to ethical standards is stronger than ever.”
Garcia’s deputy Cornel Borbély has been appointed as acting Chairman of the investigatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee and he will lead the on-going investigations.
Blatter recognised that the process had taken a long time and said he understood “the views of those who have been critical… At the same time we also need to remember that while the report is complete, the investigations flowing from it are not. We must ensure that we do not jeopardise those investigations.”
He also recognised that “the publication of this report has become a barrier to rebuilding public confidence and trust in FIFA.” But he defended the process saying that: “We need to ensure that we respect the rules of our organisation and that we do not breach confidentiality in a way that will prevent people from speaking out in the future.”
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