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Sepp Blatter has announced he will stand down as FIFA president -
though will continue in the role until an 'extraordinary congress' can be
called to vote in a successor
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Sepp Blatter has sensationally quit amid the bribery scandal that
has consumed FIFA.
In an astonishing announcement at FIFA
HQ in Zurich, Blatter revealed that he is walking away after 17 years as the
most powerful man in football.
At a hastily organized press conference
in Zurich this evening, Blatter said: 'I have been reflecting deeply about my
presidency and about the forty years in which my life has been inextricably
bound to FIFA and the great sport of football. I cherish FIFA more than
anything and I want to do only what is best for FIFA and for
football.
Daily Mail /CCTV Africa Live News report:
'I felt compelled to stand for
re-election, as I believed that this was the best thing for the organization.
That election is over but FIFA’s challenges are not. FIFA needs a profound
overhaul.
'While I have a mandate from the
membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world
of football – the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe
and love football as much as we all do at FIFA.
'Therefore, I have decided to lay down
my mandate at an extraordinary elective Congress. I will continue to exercise
my functions as FIFA President until that election.
'The next ordinary FIFA Congress will
take place on 13 May 2016 in Mexico City. This would create unnecessary delay
and I will urge the Executive Committee to organize an Extraordinary Congress
for the election of my successor at the earliest opportunity.
'This will need to be done in line with
FIFA’s statutes and we just allow enough time for the best candidates to
present themselves and to campaign.
'Since I shall not be a candidate, and
am therefore now free from the constraints that elections inevitably impose, I
shall be able to focus on driving far-reaching, fundamental reforms that
transcend our previous efforts.
'For years, we have worked hard to put
in place administrative reforms, but it is plain to me that while these must
continue, they are not enough.
'The Executive Committee includes
representatives of confederations over whom we have no control, but for whose
actions FIFA is held responsible. We need deep-rooted structural change.
'The size of the Executive Committee
must be reduced and its members should be elected through the FIFA
Congress.
'The integrity checks for all Executive
Committee members must be organized centrally through FIFA and not through the
confederations. We need term limits not only for the president but for all
members of the Executive Committee.
'I have fought for these changes before
and, as everyone knows, my efforts have been blocked.
'This time, I will succeed. I cannot do
this alone. I have asked Domenico Scala to oversee the introduction and
implementation of these and other measures.
'[Domenico Scala] is the Independent
Chairman of our Audit and Compliance Committee elected by the FIFA
Congress.
'He is also the Chairman of the ad hoc
Electoral Committee and, as such, he will oversee the election of my
successor.
'Mr. Scala enjoys the confidence of a
wide range of constituents within and outside of FIFA and has all the knowledge
and experience necessary to help tackle these major reforms.
'It is my deep care for FIFA and its
interests, which I hold very dear, that has led me to take this decision.
'I would like to thank those who have
always supported me in a constructive and loyal manner as President of FIFA and
who have done so much for the game that we all love.
'What matters to me more than anything
is that when all of this is over, football is the winner.'
Blatter is currently under the
microscope as the FBI investigate whether bribes were authorized by the world
governing body.
It comes on the day FIFA was plunged
into fresh turmoil after an explosive letter appeared to contradict its claims
that Sepp Blatter's right-hand man was not involved in the payment of an
alleged US$10million bribe.
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This letter addressed to Jerome Valcke
was published by SABC News on Tuesday morning
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The payment is at the heart of an FBI
probe which claims the money was given to disgraced former vice-president Jack
Warner and his deputy Chuck Blazer in return for them voting for the 2010
World Cup to be played in South Africa.
Secretary general Jerome Valcke was
last night suspected of signing off the payment, but FIFA issued a statement
this morning robustly denying he had any involvement.
They insisted it was instead authorised
by Julio Grondona, the former finance chief and Blatter's long-time ally who
died last year.
However, just an hour later, a letter from the South
African Football Association emerged that appeared to blow apart those claims.
Sepp Blatter, outgoing FIFA
president
Reuters reports:
Factbox on Sepp Blatter who said on
Tuesday he was quitting as president of FIFA, four days after being re-elected
for a fifth term of office, with soccer's ruling body engulfed in a corruption
scandal.
Born on March 10, 1936 in the Swiss
town of Visp.
EARLY CAREER
Graduated from the Sion and St Maurice
colleges in Switzerland and then secured a Bachelor of Business Administration and
Economics degree from the Faculty of Law at Lausanne University.
Blatter was an active footballer from
1948-1971, playing in Swiss amateur leagues. He was a member of the board of
Neuchatel Xamax soccer club from 1970-1975.
Blatter began his professional career
as Head of Public Relations of the Valaisan Tourist Board in Switzerland and in
1964 became General Secretary of the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation. As Director
of Sports Timing and Public Relations at watch and timings firm Longines, he
was involved in the organisation of the 1972 and 1976 Olympic Games, getting
his first taste of the international sports scene.
AT FIFA
Became FIFA secretary general in 1981
and, after 17 years serving under Joao Havelange, replaced the Brazilian as
president in 1998.
Faced trouble in 2002 when FIFA's then
secretary general Michel Zen-Ruffinen said Blatter's 1998 election victory was
based on bribery and corruption and that FIFA was being financially mismanaged
at the highest levels. Blatter denied the allegations.
Beat Issa Hayatou of Cameroon,
president of the African confederation, in the 2002 presidential election
before being returned unopposed in 2007.
In 2004 Blatter attracted scorn from
the women's game when he suggested women players should wear tighter shorts.
Won a fourth term in 2011 when
challenger Mohamed Bin Hammam of Qatar was barred from FIFA on bribery charges.
Blatter has survived a series of scandals during his term in office including
widespread accusations that Qatar bought the right to stage the 2022 World Cup.
Qatar have always denied any wrongdoing.
Faced FIFA's ethics committee in 2011
in the wake of the bribery scandal that led to Bin Hammam's life ban. Blatter
was never accused of being involved in the bribery, but there were allegations
he know of its existence and did not act. All charges against him were
dismissed. 2015
ELECTION
In 2011 Blatter said he would retire
four years later, but instead sought a fifth term of office and won the
election on May 29, 2015 after his only rival Prince Ali bin Al Hussein
withdrew following a first round of voting where the Swiss was clearly in the
lead.
Despite widespread calls for Blatter's
resignation after what was described as the worst day in FIFA's history, when
seven serving officials were arrested on bribery charges two days before the
2015 election, he told delegates: "Football needs a strong and experienced
leader. One that knows all the ins and outs and can work with our
partners". Overcoming opposition from European soccer's governing body
UEFA, who threatened at one point to boycott the Congress, he was duly elected
for another four years.
Blatter said on Tuesday at a hastily-arranged news
conference that he would resign as president, six days after the FBI raided a
hotel in Zurich and arrested several FIFA officials. "FIFA has been my
life ... what counts most for me is FIFA and football around the world,"
he said. "An extraordinary Congress is to be called to elect my successor
as soon as possible." 
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