When Joseph “Sepp” Blatter became President of FIFA in 1998 at the tender age of 62, the world of football was an entirely different place. Michael Owen was bursting onto the international scene at the World Cup, Arsene Wenger was in his first full season at Arsenal and Manchester City were battling to be promoted from the old second division. Even Zidane still had at least 70% of his hair.
There were accusations of bribery at the time after Blatter won despite being the underdog, with British author David Yallop leading the charge at the time. He said:
'Fifa won't have the investigation (into bribery allegations) because too many people implicated in corruption going back 25 years are still in positions of power.'
Perhaps the world isn’t so different after all.
Regardless, Blatter managed to hold onto his position, winning another three elections along the way. The next one commences in 2015 and if he wins he could make it 20 years in football’s top job. 20 years is an absolute age – and far too long for one man to be presiding over a world sport.
Even the President of the US is only allowed to be elected twice, (for up to ten years) and Blatter has already seen off Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. President Obama was first elected in 2009, so if Blatter gets his way, he’ll outlast him too.
Some point to his age as a reason why he shouldn’t get the post. Let’s be straight. He’s old. He’s five years older than Pele and he was born before WW2. He’s actually ten years younger than the Queen, but one of the main differences is that the FIFA presidency isn’t his divine birth right.
On the subject of divine rights, Pope Francis is probably one of the best examples to compare to Blatter. He took the role in 2013 at the age of 76, and won plaudits for the way he changed perceptions about the Church, showing that age is merely a number depending on the individual.
His age should be the least of our worries. This is the man who said racism didn’t exist in football when quizzed after the John Terry saga of 2011:
“There is no racism, there is maybe one of the players towards another, he has a word or a gesture which is not the correct one, but also the one who is affected by that.”
“He should say that this is a game. We are in a game, and at the end of the game, we shake hands, and this can happen, because we have worked so hard against racism and discrimination.”
Everybody knows that at times, shaking hands just isn’t enough. Everybody that is, except for Sepp.
His outrageous comments are seemingly endless:
"Let's get women to play in different and more feminine garb than the men, in tighter shorts for example." (2004)
But if we disregard his age and his distasteful statements, is there any real reason why he can’t be the man to lead world football? The answer is yes, there are many reasons.
The constant bribery allegations bring the entire game into disrepute, while making a mockery of any concept of fair play. The Sunday Times recently reported that the former Asian Football Confederation President Mohammed Bin-Hammam spent £3m paying football officials to support Qatar’s bid for the 2022 World Cup. If that’s not bribery - then I’m not sure what is.
For the sake of argument, let’s imagine that Sepp wasn’t involved and had no knowledge of the payments. If he’s really that incompetent, he can’t be trusted to be the head of world football. Did he think everyone chose Qatar out of the goodness of their hearts?
So, if we ignore the age, the comments, the bribery and the incompetence, are there any real reasons why he shouldn’t continue? Yes.
It’s not all bad with Sepp. Football has belatedly adapted goal-line technology, but that’s not the only change that he wanted for the beautiful game. He considered getting rid of draws at the World Cup group stages to avoid “boring” games. Oh well, international minnows. You have to beat Holland and you can’t hold out for a famous draw. There’s no such thing. Cue MIB flash.
If anything, this year’s World Cup proved that there’s nothing wrong with the formula, as millions around the planet tuned in to one of the most entertaining tournaments in recent memory.
If FIFA want any chance of a clean slate, they have to start with changes at the very top – and that means that he has to go. We can’t ignore the past, and Blatter serves as a constant reminder of the failures of football's top body, and the amount of control he has over proceedings.
In 2011 he promised that he wouldn’t stand for another election, but it’s obvious that he’s unwilling to step aside for new blood and his wage is a mystery as FIFA haven’t disclosed the figures, despite being asked to do so on a number of occasions.
So, he’s old, he makes stupid comments in public, he doesn’t think racism exists in football, he thinks women should wear skimpy outfits, he’s surrounded by bribery and corruption allegations, if he’s innocent he’s incompetent, he’s threatened to change the rules completely, he lied about quitting after this term, he won’t tell us how much he earns and he seems to revel in his power.
If you can ignore all of that, then he’s a great candidate...
The worst thing is, he’ll probably win. Amid claims of corruption and bribery no doubt.