FIFA President Suggests Reforms Announced in October

FIFA reforms proposed by Sepp Blatter will be announced in October, the President has claimed.

Blatter won his fourth term of office on June 1 as FIFA President and chosen the Executive Committee meeting of October 20 and 21 to reveal details of exactly how he intends to move forward.

“I will announce a road map of where we go and when we go,” Blatter said, first among which is likely to be rubber-stamping the proposal for future World Cup hosts to be selected by a full Congress hearing rather than simply by FIFA’s 24-strong elite Executive Committee.

Mohamed Bin Hammam, Blatter’s former election rival withdrew after claims he tried to bribe Caribbean voters and is now appealing a lifetime ban imposed by FIFA’s Ethics Committee.

The infamous scandals also ended the football career of senior FIFA vice-president Jack Warner who resigned rather than face a similar punishment.

Two more FIFA Executive members, Amos Adamu and Reynald Temarii, were suspended last November after allegations of vote-trading in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bid races.

Their are issues still to be resolved as FIFA are still investigating the roles played by 16 Caribbean officials in allegedly accepting $40,000 cash payments in return for voting for Bin Hammam before he pulled out of the race to face Blatter.

“I’m very disappointed and very sad,” Blatter said of the Caribbean region’s alleged complicity. They are part of FIFA and I’m very concerned about that. It was a very difficult year, I am working on different items and I will present to the Executive Committee of FIFA during the meeting.