It was recently announced that in an effort to continue reform within FIFA, current president Sepp Blatter met with top sponsors to discuss methods of change. One path to success is to create a(nother) Reform Committee headed by former International Olympic Committee Vice President Francois Carrard. He came to fame when he helped clean up the IOC after the scandal in Salt Lake City.

It all sounded good until Carrard opened his mouth to speak with the press. In typical Sepp Blatter style, things went bad real fast for the embattled organization.

During his first interview with the media, he said two of the five members of the Advisory Board will be filled by people agreed to by top sponsors (Coca-Cola, McDonalds, etc). This writer knows what you're thinking: wait, Advisory Board? Yes, there will be a 5 person board that will offer suggestions about how to change FIFA but won't have any actual power. The Reform Committee will be filled with 12 people as voted upon by the six Confederations (plus Carrard).

The five member board will be the two sponsor members plus three other people of, "experience, wisdom and international stature." He then went on to say that he might approach The Pope or Lady Gaga to advise them (let's hope he's joking). The one key aspect Carrard is looking for is people not in sport, yet still having international experience, especially crisis experience. That is an encouraging sign despite the other bits mentioned. To be fair, another good sign is that these meetings will not be held at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, but rather at Berne.

Considering how other reform and advisory boards have gone over the years, the odds that this group of five (forget the 12) can accomplish anything meaningful is slim.

As the press conference continued, Carrard revealed that he backs Sepp Blatter and feels the press has been unkind to him. "He certainly made mistakes, but he also brought positive elements," he said. "Unfortunately, it's always like that when somebody stays too long, the negative takes over. This man is being treated unfairly."

Considering the depth of corruption that Blatter has not only fostered during his 20 year dictatorship imperial reign presidency but actively participated in, it's ludicrous to say he is being treated unfairly. One would be hard pressed to find many positive changes Blatter has enacted for the mass' enjoyment of the sport. For smaller members of FIFA, especially at the confederation and federation level, Blatter has been a revelation.

Carrard couldn't end things there as he went on to take a swipe at the United States, specifically the soccer culture and the Department of Justice.

"...if we talk about corruption ... I have on my table all the US proceedings. In the indictment, there is not a word against him [Blatter]. Nothing," Carrard said. He said of soccer in the US, "...football, soccer, does not have the same weight as baseball, basketball and American football. There, it's just an ethnic sport for girls in schools."

While the first part of his statement is true, it's insulting that he so casually dismisses 140 years of soccer being played in the US. The game dates back to the 1870s in most states. Technically the first known game took place on October 11, 1866 in Waukesha, Wisconsin when Carroll College defeated Waukesha Town Club by a score of 5-2.

As for the second part of his statement, it's nice to see Carrard continue the long-standing tradition of sexism at FIFA. Considering that the majority of sponsors he just had a meeting with are US based, it's unreal that he'd so casually insult the sport being played in their country. Never mind that the USWNT is both the current best women's team in the world and the USMNT is one of the better men's teams. Never mind that Major League Soccer is probably the fastest growing league in the world (and one of the top couple dozen leagues, if not higher). Never mind that NASL and USL are making huge strides in being some of the best lower division leagues. Never mind that Americans and non of every ethnicity play the sport, in both genders.

For a man looking to reform FIFA, how can he so casually dismiss a multi-billion dollar sport in a country that is growing nearly exponentially? If nothing else, FIFA has long been consistent about wanting money and the United States has a lot of it to give with even more possible.

If fans are looking for real change at FIFA with this Committee and Advisory Board, they should look elsewhere. Carrard appears to be yet another member of the Boys Club brought out to be window dressing on meaningless reforms. If that wasn't clear enough based on the above, Carrard had the gall to say the following: "...the case involves only a few 'rogues', including at the FIFA executive committee, who have filled their pockets from continental competitions."

Sure, Carrard. Just top officials from CAF, CONCACAF, CONMENBOL and FIFA itself. A few "rogues" indeed.

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Kyle Nowotny
Long-time Houston sports fan, season-ticket holder for the Houston Dynamo and sports writer since August 2014. BA in Creative Writing from the University of Houston.