Amid scandal, Sepp Blatter elected to fifth term as FIFA president
Forget criticism and allegations, Sepp Blatter was elected to a fifth consecutive term as FIFA president at the 65th FIFA Congress on Friday.
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3 min read
Updated on Friday at 2:35 p.m.: Sunil Gulati, the president of US Soccer and the FIFA executive committee representative for the United States, released the following statement after the re-election of FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
"While we are disappointed in the result of the election, we will continue to push for meaningful change within FIFA. Our goal is for governance of FIFA that is responsible, accountable, transparent and focused solely on the best interests of the game. This is what FIFA needs and deserves, and what the people who love our game around the world demand. We congratulate President Blatter and it is our hope he will make reform his number one priority to ensure the integrity of the sport across the world."
Original story:
Just two days after nine officials from FIFA, the international governing body of soccer, were arrested by Swiss officers on federal corruption charges that will result in them being extradited to the United States, FIFA president Sepp Blatter was elected to a fifth term at the FIFA Congress, held for the 65th time on Friday in Zurich, Switzerland.
Blatter led the first vote 133-73 (206 of 209 ballots were validated), but he fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to elect a president in the initial round. A second vote was set to get underway until Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein, Blatter's only competitor for the post, conceded the election.
Son of the King of Jordan and the vice president of FIFA in Asia, Prince Ali has been critical of Blatter’s allegedly unsavory tactics but was not seen as a likely replacement for the longtime president.
Prince Ali, a reformist candidate who promised only to serve one term and wanted to greatly increase transparency within the organization, faced a steep uphill battle if he was to win the FIFA presidency. He would have needed to add 32 votes in the second round in order to upset Blatter.
In office since 1998, Blatter’s 17-year tenure at FIFA has been shrouded by controversy and allegations of corruption. Most notably as of late, Blatter and other FIFA officials are widely believed to have been involved in corrupt activities that resulted in the organization awarding the 2018 World Cup to Russia and the 2022 World Cup to Qatar.
On Thursday, Blatter spoke at the FIFA Congress and said he should not be held accountable for the actions of the officials arrested one day earlier. He condemned the “actions of individuals” who brought “shame and humiliation” to the organization he oversees.
“Many people hold me ultimately responsible for the global football community. We, or I, cannot monitor everyone all the time,” Blatter said. “If people want to do wrong, they will also try to hide it. But it must also fall to me to be responsible for the reputation of our entire organization, and to find a way to fix things.”
UEFA president Michel Platini spoke out against Blatter and made it clear his organization would not vote for his re-election. He also called on FIFA to postpone the election for six months and for Blatter to step down from his post.
Sunil Gulati, president of US Soccer and the FIFA executive committee representative for the United States, wrote Thursday on Twitter that he would cast his vote for Prince Ali. “This is a vote for good governance [and] promise for our game,” he said.
Blatter is only the eighth person to serve as FIFA president since 1904. His 17-year term is the third-longest, behind only Jules Rimet (33 years, 1921-54) and his predecessor, Joao Havelange (24 years, 1974-98).
