Oh FIFA will you ever learn? Just when it appeared that the world’s football governing body had finally turned itself around it gets drug back into its ugly, sordid history. On Thursday morning in Switzerland, seven FIFA officials were given not presents from Santa Claus but rather indictments stemming from a man who looks like Santa Claus.
The indictments of 16 FIFA officials, including acting CONCACAF President Alfredo Hawit and CONMEBOL President Juan Angel Napout, may not have had the impact that the previous string of indictments in May had. The first of anything always has a far greater impact and as many people know from the movies sequels are almost always inferior to the originals (Return of the Jedi and Temple of Doom, notwithstanding).
But the indictments handed out today prove what many have long suggested: that the corruption in FIFA is deeply rooted into the foundations of the organization.
After all this is supposedly the new FIFA where corruption no longer exists and everyone is transparent and open. New FIFA may tout itself as being a different organization but that is difficult to believe when the organization cannot have a simple meeting without its members being handcuffed and taken to prison in the middle of the night.
In proving that the the organization needs to change disgraced ex-FIFA President and pudgy Lex Luthor lookalike Sepp Blatter and UEFA President Michel Platini are obviously the big fish, the sexy names that every newspaper editor craves to have on Page One. But like any organization suffering from alleged criminal behavior there are obviously layers of bad behavior and impropriety. Much like with the indictments in May Thursday’s arrests show that the organization has corrupt aspects in all facets of its operation. The difference between May and now though is that these individuals were part of the new FIFA and supposedly ethical.
Take Mr. Hawit for example. Looking at his C/V he would appear to be the perfect candidate to clean up FIFA and perhaps the most corrupt organization: CONCACAF. A former player and a lawyer Mr. Hawit would appear to have the skills to not only understand the issues that players have to face in developing leagues (he played for Olimpia and Montagua during the 1970s). His statement to the press back in June also seems to lend credence to the notion that he can help bring change to the international game:
“We are at an important moment for the game, a moment that we must not squander. CONCACAF stands ready to assist in the process of rebuilding FIFA in a way that strengthens the game for many years to come.”
Yet here we are five months later with CONCACAF’s third consecutive President facing jail time. There are many things that one could take from this situation the overarching theme that sticks out the most is that CONCACAF, and by extension FIFA, are not taking the process of cleaning up their organization seriously. Any organization that hires someone with alleged issues like this in their background and assumes that they will be accepted by the public with open arms is either delusional or frankly does not care what other people think.
Perhaps it may be too easy to paint all of their members as being corrupt but the inability to find at least one person to head CONCACAF who will not raise red flags speaks loudly about their organization.
CONCACAF did comment on the indictments saying: CONCACAF remains committed to implementing fully the Reform Framework that it announced in July of this year. The majority of these reforms have already been implemented in CONCACAF’s administrative and compliance structures. /pullquote]
While that is all well and good there is a small problem with it: these reforms were created by people who are currently being indicted! What sort of level of trust can be had from a series of reforms that were drafted by people who are currently facing indictment or do not have the temerity to show up to answer questions in front of the United States Congress? That would be like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission asking Bernie Maddof about eliminating Ponzi schemes.
It also sheds a terrible light on U.S. Soccer and its President, Sunil Gulati. If there is one person that perhaps has the most to lose in this situation (aside from those possibly going to jail) it is the embattled head of all things American soccer. After all of the talk of the United States pulling out of hosting the Copa America Centenario. Gulati is an economics professor at Columbia University so he is obviously a smart fellow. That U.S. Soccer trusted these so-called reformers again and is being burned shows that this perhaps his time at U.S. Soccer and at FIFA should come to an end. It also raises plenty of questions as to what he teaches on business and ethics.
The good news from today’s indictments is that it shows that the spotlight on FIFA’s wrongdoings will not go away. An organization that has thrived for years on hiding in the darkness when things get ugly increasingly finds itself having to justify all of the alleged terrible acts that it has committed without any respite. For those who are looking to drag this organization kicking and screaming into making serious reform the continued pressure on Mount Zurich is welcomed news. The question now is if there are any honest people in FIFA that can actually bring change?
