By Andrew Warshaw
November 2 – The fallout from the unprecedented FIFA bribery scandal has extended as far as one of the organisation’s major sponsors, with Dubai’s Emirates Airlines undecided whether to renew its multi-million dollar deal after 2014.
Australian media group B&T media quoted Boutros Boutros, the divisional senior vice-president of corporate communications for the airline as saying it felt “overlooked” during the recent cash-for-votes debacle that rocked soccer’s governing body earlier this year.
“We are seriously thinking about not renewing our partnership with FIFA beyond 2014,” Boutros was quoted as saying during the Emirates-sponsored Melbourne Cup horse race.
“We don’t get into politics but we believe the situation with FIFA went beyond an internal problem and became much bigger.
“As a sponsor you expect they will come and write to you in the middle of the issue or at the end of it.
“To them they act as if it’s nothing for sponsors.
“For us, in our history of sponsorship, it is the only event that when it happened our clients started writing to us saying,’Why do you support this organisation?’
“We are considered a partner, but if you are a partner in the business I think once a year you owe him a report.
“And that’s why we felt we were overlooked by FIFA.
“At the end of the day they were probably too busy, but at the end of the day we haven’t seen any changes.
“There is nothing telling you these things will not happen again.”
More than one third of FIFA’s Executive Committee have been tarnished by corruption allegations of one sort or another, with former Asian soccer chief Mohamed Bin Hammam banned for life.
The stance by Emirates is the most damning yet by any of FIFA’s main backers and could have severe repercussions.
Conglomerates like Emirates back sport and sports federations primarily for brand awareness and both Coca-Cola and Adidas have expressed their concerns, although not in such strong terms, over the vote-rigging allegations that enveloped last year’s 2018 and 2022 World Cup ballots.
FIFA Pesident Sepp Blatter will hope that his recently announced anti-corruption reforms will send out the right message to sponsors but Emirates has commissioned research into its association with FIFA – worth $195 million (£122 million/€142 million) and started in 2006 – to see if there has been any long-term damage to its brand.
“Emirates has not yet commenced discussions with FIFA on the extension of our partnership agreement beyond 2014,” the airline said in a statement.
Discussions will begin in due course.”
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