In October 2013, the Daily Telegraph wrote this headline and leader:
“Madcap proposals by Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini to increase World Cup finalists to 40 just do not add up – Sport’s top men claim that world Cup finals should be open to more nations but it is just another political football being kicked about by the hierarchy”
The paper continued to say:
“Under the madcap World Cup expansion plans dreamed up by Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini, countries such as San Marino, Lilliput, Mordor and Narnia will all qualify automatically for the finals at some point. (…) Back in the real world, the globe’s supreme sporting tournament needs rigorous protection from meddle-men such as Blatter and Platini, respective presidents of Fifa and Uefa seeking a dilution of a special competition’s quality for questionable ends. For those with long experience of football politics, the latest stance-taking by Blatter and Platini appears aimed more at the Fifa presidential race of 2015 rather than the Fifa World Cup race of 2018. This is about Zurich not Moscow. The battle of hustings has begun.”
Fast-forward to February 19, 2015. Venue: the Wembley Stadium and its famed Wembley Suite. Now here’s a man who is a fine contender for FIFA’s presidency. A one-time exceptional footballer, Ballon d’Or awardee, player in top clubs – including Qatar’s Al Rayyan (funny how his last stint never gets a mention).
This good man, Luis Figo, presents his credentials … his “manifesto”, dreamed up by the same PR advisers who have a UEFA mandate, a Prince Ali mandate, and, you guessed it: a Luis Figo mandate. But Luis Figo, as he says himself, repeatedly, is an independent man.
Really?
Well. One of his key points is the expansion of the FIFA World Cup not only to Blatter/Platini’s “madcap” idea of Ocotber 2013, ie 40 national teams, but, hey, why not go a little further and get some additional leverage: he even thinks of 48 teams and two parallel tournaments, and one final-final tournament, and.. and…well, maybe intergalactic championships too?
A German website, LaOla, says this today (note: a German website, not an English publication):
“The recommendations made by Figo in his Manifesto urgently remind us of Blatter methods. He wants to spend more money on development projects for children and youth players. Sounds like a good idea by the looks of it but similar projects are typical for Blatter too, aren’t they – with the result of course that the one or the other million (of development money) swiftly disappears in the pockets of a corrupt official.. And Figo’s demand to expand the World Cup to 48 teams, sounds very familiar too. It seems quite clear what Figo wants to achieve with that idea: garner votes among the smaller FIFA Members. Michel Platini did the very same when he – supported by Blatter – competed against Blatter’s arch rival Lennart Johannson for the office of UEFA president – and won.”
So, here we have it.
Luis Figo is a good man. A good soldier, and very humble human being. He “decided” to run for FIFA president because FIFA is so corrupt, he says, that he had no other choice but to run. He must have thought really long and hard. And it did work. He came up with two exceptional and totally new ideas (see above). Erm.. not that new, are they?
But what we are really impressed with is this: when Blatter and Platini vented the idea of a 40-team World Cup, it was madcap. Now that Luis Figo delivers the same even more madcap – message, nobody says a word.
Why?
INSIDE Editorial is Insideworldfootball’s comment on the politics and the business of football in a world that isn’t always quite what it seems. Its intention is to be thought provoking and challenging. It is often irreverent and frequently hits where it hurts – the truth often does. It is usually filed by the Editor-in-Chief. From time to time, opinions of the editorial board are summarised and occasionally, an Op-Ed piece by an invited guest writer is published. Since the INSIDE Editorial reflects our own views, it is not signed each time, except if an outside guest pens an Op-Ed piece.