By Andrew Warshaw
April 9 – FIFA presidential outsider Luis Figo is disputing the claim that the whole of Africa will back Sepp Blatter in next month’s election.
The former Portuguese icon, who by most accounts has considerable ground to make up to have any kind of impact in the election process, is convinced some African FIFA members will vote for him on May 29.
Figo has been in Cairo for the Confederation of Africa Football Congress along with the other candidates for FIFA president.
Cranking up the public relations machine, he says the acclaim for Blatter after CAF president Issa Hayatou expressed the Continent’s total support for the veteran Swiss was not nearly as gushing as in the past.
“I’m positive that Mr Hayatou did not speak in the name of the 54 members of the confederation,” said Figo. “Even when he announced he would support Blatter, we could notice a difference from past congresses when a statement like that normally is followed by a standing ovation.”
It is not known how many past CAF Congresses Figo has actually attended but he continued: “This time we heard just a normal applause, which confirms my idea that a lot of African countries understand and agree with the need to change for the better of everyone, especially the national associations.
“In fact there were federation presidents who assured me they would vote for me but they were reluctant to say this out loud because they feared reactions against them, their federations and even their countries.
“To end this kind of atmosphere is why I decided to be a candidate. Football should be about a beautiful game and people should be able to express themselves freely and openly.”
The odds on Figo upsetting the odds may be widening rapidly but in one way he does have a point. Such are the vagaries of FIFA elections that just as some UEFA countries could well break ranks and vote for Blatter instead of one of their own, if past history is repeated African delegates may well do the same in reverse.
When Blatter was first elected as FIFA boss in 1998, Hayatou, who at the time was no friend of the present incumbent, pledged Africa’s votes to Lennart Johansson. In the end most of Africa’s members voted Blatter into power where he stayed ever since.
And four years later, when Hayatou himself stood against Blatter, almost half of the African members are understood to have voted against their own confederation president.
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