News broke Wednesday afternoon that the FIFA Ethics Committee is considering a 90 day suspension for Sepp Blatter. The committee has agreed to the suspension and has forwarded their results to Judge Hans-Joachim Eckert who now has to make the final decision. That in itself is a bit worrying, as is the timeline.

For those who have forgotten, Eckert is the one who whitewashed the Michael Garcia report last year. The report was conducted by former US attorney over the voting processes of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. Garcia ultimately resigned in protest when his 300 page report was, in his mind, falsely summarized by the German judge.

It's this person who will determine Blatter's fate.

There are other concerns on the Committee's plate as well. They are considering whether to suspend UEFA President Michael Platini. His status is a bit different from Blatter's. The Swiss police have interviewed him but haven't opened a formal investigation yet. It appears from the outside that they are forcing the Frenchman to decide his fate: witness against Blatter or jail cell alongside him. Interestingly, if the Committee does suspend Platini, he won't be eligible to run for FIFA President in February of 2016.

South Korean tycoon Chung Mong-Joon is also facing a suspension over his running of the 2022 World Cup bid by his native country. If found guilty by the committee, he could face a 19 year ban (15 for the bid, 4 for criticizing the Committee). It's worth noting that this investigation began after he announced his intention to run for FIFA President. He's also hired a lawyer in Zurich to sue the embattled organization for more than $100 million.

All this the FIFA Ethics Committee must decide while top sponsors are calling for Blatter to step down. None of them have dropped the "...or else" line just yet but aren't far off if there isn't serious change in FIFA.

While this drama persists, the lingering issues around the 2022 World Cup in Qatar continue with more workers dying by the day. It's only a matter of time before the Swiss and/or American authorities take a hard look at that tournament and force FIFA's hand. As of now, that tournament is slated to begin in November 21, 2022.

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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.