It was a dark day for the beautiful game of football yesterday – and yet the dramatic arrests in Switzerland could just be the bright, fresh light of change the sport has been crying out for.
Before yesterday’s events, Fifa president Sepp Blatter was widely expected to be re-elected for an unprecedented fifth term tomorrow. But his tenure has been blighted by one controversy after another – ranging from allegations of financial wrongdoing (including the possible acceptance of bribes which led to Qatar being awarded the 2022 World Cup) to Blatter’s own insensitive and widely ridiculed remarks about women’s football, homosexuality and racism in soccer.
Yesterday, seven of the most powerful figures in world football were arrested on corruption charges, and authorities also announced a criminal investigation into the awarding of the next two World Cups. Fifa vice-president Jeffrey Webb, who is just below Blatter in the Fifa hierarchy, was among those arrested.
No self-respecting head of any sports body, let alone that of the most popular global sport in the world, would be expected to survive such turmoil. But it would be no surprise if Blatter simply tried to ride out the storm. Indeed, the early response from Fifa seemed to suggest exactly that. Fifa said it was a “difficult moment” but that Blatter would stand for re-election as planned in Geneva tomorrow.
Here in South Africa, football has faced its own problems relating to corruption and the bribing of match officials. As a continent, Africa has stood behind Blatter, but the Fifa corruption inquiry will also probe bribes allegedly paid during South Africa’s 2010 World Cup bid. It is time African soccer comes to its senses. The game needs a new dynamic leader who carries the moral weight that Blatter lacks.
Icons like Michel Platini or Franz Beckenbauer are deeply respected and, having played the game at the highest level, they will be as close to the heartbeat of the game as could possibly be. They are the kind of men who can bring the light in. Blatter might not step down of his own accord. But then he must be pushed.