Garcia Looks for FIFA to Publish Bidding Report

Michael Garcia, FIFA’s chief ethics investigator, has called on football’s world governing body to publish his report into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

After allegations were made of corruption, the attorney has investigated the process which ended in Russia and Qatar being awarded the tournaments. 

However, FIFA president Sepp Blatter says publishing the report would threaten witness confidentiality. 

But Garcia said greater transparency would benefit football’s world governing body. 

“The investigation and adjudication process operates in most parts unseen and unheard,” said Garcia. 

“That’s a kind of system which might be appropriate for an intelligence agency but not for an ethics compliance process in an international sports institution that serves the public and is the subject of intense public scrutiny. 

Garcia was talking at the ABA Criminal Justice Section International White Collar Crime Institute Conference in London.

“Transparency is not intended to embarrass certain individuals by airing dirty laundry or to harm the organisation by showing what went wrong. It’s the opposite. 

“Where the institution has taken significant steps forward and made that progress, transparency provides evidence of that to the public. 

“It is one thing to tell people that a rigorous process is in place, it is another thing to show them how that process works and what it has uncovered. 

“FIFA built a system that should inspire confidence that things have changed for the better. Showing that to the public serves FIFA’s best interests.” 

UEFA president Michel Platini has already called for Garcia’s findings to be made public.