By Andrew Warshaw
April 2 – Uruguayan football is in chaos just two months before the World Cup after the entire board of its national association resigned over increasing fan violence. FIFA has yet to comment on the crisis which could potentially threaten Uruguay’s World Cup participation if there is no leadership in place to take the country to Brazil.
“It seems nonsensical to me that the executive committee resigns two months before the World Cup, because the big loser here could be the national team,” Edgar Welker, vice president of the Penarol club, was quoted as saying.
Uruguay’s clubs will reportedly try to set up a temporary committee until the end of the World Cup.
The crisis blew up when Uruguayan President Jose Mujica withdrew police protection from the home stadiums of Penarol and Nacional, the most popular teams in Uruguay, after Nacional fans injured 40 police officers in post-game violence.
“We Uruguayans cannot continue in this irrationality, accepting human stupidity. We need to react urgently,” the president said. Uruguay’s players went ahead with Saturday’s games but pulled out of Sunday’s apparently on the instructions of their union.
Afterwards all five leaders of the federation’s executive committee quit, including Uruguayan Football Association President Sebastian Bauza, issuing the following statement: “The well-publicised acts that have occurred in recent times show the need for [the board to] step aside and allow other political views to govern our football. The Executive Board has worked with the sole objective to benefit our football and, today, there is a clear perception that it’s an obstacle to continue with this line of work.”
Local media suggested FIFA could suspend Uruguay under its rules that forbid political intervention. But Welker said the government had nothing to do with the mass resignations and Conmebol, the South American confederation, said the country’s World Cup participation was not at immediate risk.
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