Old boss Blatter watches Zurich feeding frenzy from a different place
February 29 – Sepp Blatter says a weight has been lifted from his shoulders and that he is at peace with himself – even though he has left FIFA under the darkest of clouds.
FIFA
Brave new world, same old problems. FIFPro and ECA put pressure on
February 29 – Whilst most stakeholders were quick to congratulate Gianni Infantino after his presidential election victory, the international players’ union FIFPro took a rather more negative approach, suggesting little would be done for those who actually play the game.
Infantino wins FIFA presidency in second round of voting
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 26 – Gianni Infantino secured a surprise second-round victory over Asian football supremo Sheikh Salman today to become the ninth Fifa president following Sepp Blatter’s 18-year reign and keep the post in European hands.
Voting goes to second round with Infantino and Salman neck and neck
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 26 – The FIFA presidential election as expected moved into a second round of voting today as none of the four remaining candidates in the race after Tokyo Sexwale’s withdrawal managed to achieve the required two-thirds majority.
Sexwale pitches and then pulls, Salman and Infantino focus on the money
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 26 – And then there were four. Just a few hours before the election of a new FIFA president, rank outsider Tokyo Sexwale as expected withdrew from the race but not before stealing the show with a wonderfully humourous speech to FIFA’s voting members.
FIFA crisis: $550m down, but lawyers are coining $10m a month
By Paul Nicholson in Zurich
February 26 – FIFA is stumping up a massive $10 million a month for legal bills and is $550 million off its target.
Costa Rica’s Li meets bail conditions but US takes several pounds of flesh
By Mark Baber
February 26 – After nine months in jail, including nine weeks in the notorious New York Metropolitan Detention Centre – known as ‘Brooklyn’s Abu Ghraib’ – former FIFA executive committee member-elect, CONCACAF executive committee member and Costa Rican Football Federation president Eduardo Li was finally granted bail after a posting a bond of $300,000 in cash, $800,000 in US properties and the salaries of nine supporters worth over $900,000.
FIFA vote through reform proposals with huge majority
By Andrew Warshaw and Paul Nicholson in Zurich
February 26 – Within minutes of being urged not to waste a one-off and essential opportunity to clean up their organisation of years of scandal and disgrace, FIFA’s global membership approved a radical new set of reform proposals by a huge majority today – but not with the unanimous backing the architects of the package might have wished for.
FIFA’s ‘reforming’ Congress opens to rallying call from Hayatou and Bach
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 26 – Arguably the most crucial summit in FIFA’s 112-year history got under way this morning with a final rallying cry from its outgoing acting president to endorse the much-touted detailed reform package designed to totally overhaul the culture of world football’s scandal-plagued governing body.
FIFA’s day of reckoning. Big day of big decisions in Zurich’s last chance saloon
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 25 – Deja vu, groundhog day. Same city, same conference hall. The difference of course is that this time the great survivor has no longer survived. Nevertheless the pantomime, even without its most notorious villain, goes on. The question is, which of the actors will emerge victorious? Anyone who tells you for definite that they know who is going to win the FIFA presidential election Friday afternoon and by exactly how many votes –
FIFA five in last gasp pitches as UEFA tub thump for their man
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 25 – Among friends it was inevitable that Gianni Infantino would claim the biggest acclamation when the five candidates for FIFA president made their final pitches as dusk fell over Switzerland’s banking capital today.
FIFA’s BIG week: Hayatou holds court at CONCACAF urging feds to back reforms
By Paul Nicholson in Zurich
February 25 – Acting FIFA president Issa Hayatou opened CONCACAF’s extraordinary congress in Zurich saying that this is one “of the most important weeks in the history of FIFA, and global football.”
Exclusive: Bility to call for FIFA congress to put presidential vote before reform vote
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 25 – Hopes of FIFA’s much-trumpeted reform measures being approved at tomorrow’s electoral congress have suffered their first potentially serious hitch. Just as Cameroon’s acting FIFA president Issa Hayatou passionately urged the six confederations to rubber-stamp the far-reaching proposals in order to save the organisation’s reputation, so the head of one of his own African federations threatened to throw a major spanner in the works.
Belize’s Vicente arrives in Zurich to vote but his exco claims he has been suspended
By Mark Baber
February 25 – Football Federation of Belize President, Ruperto Vicente, voting in tomorrow’s FIFA election in Zurich, has been suspended according to his Executive Committee, although he claims the suspension is not legal. FIFA and CONCACAF are yet to rule on the matter.
Platini openly backs Infantino and vows to fight the FIFA ‘bureaucrats’
By Andrew Warshaw in Zurich
February 25 – Banned UEFA president Michel Platini insists he will do everything he can to clear his name as he accused those now in charge of FIFA of being “bureaucrats” who engineered his downfall after seeing his eight-year suspension reduced by two years by the FIFA Ethics Committee.