Sepp Blatter, FIFA's long-time president, announced on Tuesday that he
will be resigning as soon as an extraordinary FIFA congress has elected a
successor.
Blatter had won a fifth term as
president just last Friday and seemed to feel vindicated in two victory
speeches, after yet another round of bribery scandals had beset him and
his organization. A recent indictment by the Department of Justice had
led to the arrest of nine of his close associates last week.
The
sudden relinquishing of his iron grip on FIFA comes as a total shock to
the soccer world, which had assumed Blatter would remain in power
through the end of his new four-year term, extending his reign to 21
years. After defeating Prince Ali Bin Hussein 133-73 in the first round
of Friday's election, the Jordanian challenger withdrew from the run-off
vote. Blatter seemed to have once again consolidated his vast power,
acquired over some four decades at the world's most popular sport's
governing body.
Blatter
didn't explain what triggered his resignation. Part of the FBI
investigation that led to the DoJ's indictment, however, had accused
South Africa of buying votes from the CONCACAF region, which includes
the United States, that ultimately landed it the 2010 World Cup.
Subsequent reports out of South Africa in the last 24 hours then
produced a letter seeming to show that the $10 million payment had been
funneled through FIFA directly, and that secretary general Jerome
Valcke, Blatter's right-hand man, had personally overseen the
transaction.
"I have been
reflecting deeply about my presidency and about the 40 years in which my
life has been inextricably bound to FIFA and the great sport of
football," Blatter said in his address. "I cherish FIFA more than
anything and I want to do only what is best for FIFA and for football."
"I
felt compelled to stand for re-election, as I believed that this was
the best thing for the organization," he continued. "That election is
over but FIFA's challenges are not. FIFA needs a profound overhaul.
While I have a mandate from the membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I
have a mandate from the entire world of football – the fans, the
players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as
much as we all do at FIFA. Therefore, I have decided to lay down my
mandate at an extraordinary elective Congress. I will continue to
exercise my functions as FIFA president until that election."
Blatter
urged FIFA's executive committee to put on the extraordinary congress
"at the earliest opportunity." The next one on the regular schedule is
slated for Mexico City on May 13, 2016, but Blatter argued that waiting
that long would "create unnecessary delay."
"Since I shall not be a
candidate, and am therefore now free from the constraints that
elections inevitably impose, I shall be able to focus on driving
far-reaching, fundamental reforms that transcend our previous efforts,"
Blatter added. "For years, we have worked hard to put in place
administrative reforms, but it is plain to me that while these must
continue, they are not enough.
"I have fought for these changes before and, as everyone knows, my efforts have been blocked. This time, I will succeed."
Domenico
Scala, FIFA's independent chairman of the Audit and Compliance
Committee, will oversee the electoral committee and assist in Blatter's
promised reforms.
"The decision that he has made today was
difficult and courageous," Scala said in his own address. "In the
current circumstances, this is the most responsible way to ensure an
orderly transition. I know that he has truly acted with the best
interests of FIFA and football in his heart."
Scala indicated that
FIFA's statutes require a four-month notice for presidential elections
and, also requiring time to vet candidates, the extraordinary congress
should take place sometime between December and March.
"For years,
FIFA has worked hard to put in place governance reforms, but as the
president has stated, this must go further to implement deep-rooted
structural change," Scala said. "The president has outlined a number of
specific recommendations to achieve this. A number of these steps have
previously been proposed but have been rejected by members.
"Today
more than ever, FIFA is committed to ensuring that these changes are
implemented and upheld. As part of FIFA's work, the organization will
re-examine the way in which it is structured. While it would be
premature to speculate on the outcomes of this work, nothing will be off
the table."
Blatter, in closing, claimed that he had made his decision in the best interest of soccer.
"It
is my deep care for FIFA and its interests, which I hold very dear,
that has led me to take this decision," he said. "I would like to thank
those who have always supported me in a constructive and loyal manner as
president of FIFA and who have done so much for the game that we all
love. What matters to me more than anything is that when all of this is
over, football is the winner."
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