By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
November 19 – Domenico Scala, the FIFA-appointed troubleshooter who has been at the forefront of efforts to clean up the organisation, painted a grim picture today of just how deep corruption runs in football, implying those preaching the opposite message were simply in denial.
Twenty-four hours after Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini lost their appeals against their respective 90-day suspensions Scala said it was important the world acknowledged the extent to which corruption is contaminating the sport.
Speaking at the International Football Arena conference in Zurich, the head of FIFA’s audit and compliance committee pulled no punches when addressing the crisis that has enveloped FIFA with a succession of damaging scandals. Scala also leads the electoral body that decided which candidates could contest the FIFA presidential ballot to succeed Blatter in February.
“We have to accept that corruption is systemic in football,” said Scala. “If we accept it is systemic, we can start to do something about it. If we deny it, we dismiss the problem.”
Scala has submitted a comprehensive blueprint for radical change at FIFA but says unless his ideas are taken on board by the rival official Reform Committee – headed by former Olympics guru Francois Carrard – ironically meeting on an adjacent floor at FIFA headquarters at the very same time Scala was speaking – there was a risk that not enough progress will be made.
“I’m not saying my 30 pages (or proposals) are the Holy Grail but the reform process should be transparent,” Scala told delegates. “I remain optimistic that the Reform Committee is slowly moving in the right direction.”
At a media briefing in London on Wednesday FIFA presidential candidate Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein revealed that Scala’s electoral committee had given strict instructions that during the bid process FIFA’s six confederation leaders should not unduly force the hand of their individual federations when it comes to voting.
In response to that, Scala said bloc voting was not being discouraged as such but admitted his body would be monitoring the process closely.
“We can’t have a policeman behind every candidate and will have to rely on feedback,” Scala told reporters. “No system in the world can do this. But if we can see something (wrong), we can follow up. Such as if a confederation is providing funds to a candidate without disclosing it. Or if there is undue pressure put on a federation by its confederation, for instance that it would not receive any more funding if it doesn’t vote a particular way. That’s a direct threat.”
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