The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Sepp Blatter

  • I was close to death – Blatter

    I was close to death – Blatter

    The suspended FIFA president, Sepp Blatter, on Monday said he was “very close to death” when he was hospitalised earlier in the month, over stress-related problems.

    Blatter said in an interview in Zurich that he was between “the angels singing and the devil lighting the fire.”

    The Swiss said “the pressure was enormous’’ in his job lately as FIFA has been battered by corruption allegations and probes.”

    He was suspended last month after the start of a Swiss criminal probe against him on suspicion of mismanagement and a “disloyal payment’’ made to UEFA chief, Michel Platini, who is also suspended.

    Both face bans from football as the investigatory chamber of FIFA ethics committee has filed its reports to the adjudicatory chamber and called for sanctions.

    A final ruling could come before the end of the year, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.

     

  • FIFA committee wants Blatter, Platini sanctioned

    FIFA committee wants Blatter, Platini sanctioned

    The ethics committee of world’s soccer governing body FIFA said on Saturday it had completed its investigation into the conduct of FIFA President, Sepp Blatter and UEFA president, Michel Platini and requested sanctions against them.

    Both were provisionally banned for 90 days on October 8 pending the full investigation, engulfed by a deepening corruption scandal as the sport faces criminal investigations in Switzerland and the United States, Reuters reported.

    Blatter has been FIFA president since 1998. Platini has been head of European soccer’s governing body UEFA since 2007 and, until he was suspended, had been favourite to replace Blatter in the February 26 presidential election.

    “The investigatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee has submitted its final reports containing requests for sanctions against Joseph (Sepp) Blatter and Michel Platini to the adjudicatory chamber chaired by Hans-Joachim Eckert,” Reuters quoted the committee as saying in a statement.

    It did not give details of what the report had found or the sanctions it had requested.

    “For reasons linked to privacy rights and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty, the chamber will not publish details of the concluded reports and the requested sanctions against the two officials.”

    Eckert heads the adjudicatory chamber which said in a separate statement it would decide whether to open formal proceedings and, if necessary, on sanctions “in due course.”

    Platini’s hopes of standing in the FIFA election have been put on hold because of his suspension.

     

     

  • Blatter discharged from hospital

    Blatter discharged from hospital

    Suspended FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, whose world soccer federation is mired in a corruption crisis, has been discharged from hospital, his confidant and former publicist, Klaus Stoehlker, said on Thursday.

    “He had to stay a few days in hospital but now he is out, he is at home in (the canton of) Valais. He is very happy and he is relaxing a few days until the beginning of next week and then he will be back,” Stoehlker told Reuters in an interview.

    “He’s recovering very fast.”

    Blatter, who last month was suspended for 90 days by FIFA’s Ethics Committee pending a full investigation into his conduct, had been in hospital since Friday, when his United States-based lawyer, Richard Cullen, said the Swiss national had been admitted for a checkup.

    Under the terms of the suspension, Blatter, 79, who has been the FIFA president since 1998, is not allowed into the FIFA headquarters or any football stadium in an official capacity.

    Blatter won a fifth election mandate in May just after the graft scandal erupted with police raids on a hotel used by top FIFA officials. Four days later, as pressure mounted, he called a new Congress, in Zurich in February, to choose his successor.

    In September, the Swiss attorney general’s office initiated criminal proceedings against Blatter over a 2 million Swiss franc ($2.1 million) payment from FIFA to UEFA President, Michel Platini, who has also been suspended.

     

  • We agreed on Russia 2018 before vote – Blatter

    We agreed on Russia 2018 before vote – Blatter

    Suspended FIFA president, Sepp Blatter, has revealed that there was an agreement in place for Russia to host the 2018 World Cup before the voting process even took place.

    Blatter told Russian news agency Tass of a “discussion” in 2010 about future World Cups.

    He said a plan was in place for Russia to host in 2018 and the United States four years later, but a late swing in voting gave Qatar the 2022 tournament instead.

    The 79-year-old is serving a 90-day ban handed to him by FIFA’s Ethics Committee, africanFootball.com reports.

    The bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments is the subject of an ongoing Swiss criminal investigation, taking place alongside a U.S investigation into corruption charges at the football world governing body.

    Asked whether it was a mistake to hold voting for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments simultaneously, Blatter replied that before the ballot: “It was agreed inside the group that we go to Russia because it has never been to Eastern Europe, and for 2022 we go back to America.

    “And so we would have the World Cup in the two biggest political powers.”

  • Blatter appeals FIFA suspension

    Blatter appeals FIFA suspension

    Sepp Blatter has filed an official appeal against his suspension from soccer by FIFA’s ethics committee.

    Blatter, the Swiss who has been president of the football world’s governing body since 1998, was suspended on Thursday by the association’s ethics committee.

    The 79-year-old is currently facing a Swiss criminal investigation.

    The New York Times said it had obtained a copy of Blatter’s appeal against the suspension.

    In it, the paper reported that Blatter objected to brusque and unfair treatment. Blatter’s legal team also demanded to see the ethics committee’s case file and sought a hearing to argue their case in full.

    Blatter’s lawyers in Switzerland and the United States did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the report.

    In the immediate aftermath of the suspension, Blatter’s lawyers said in a statement that he was looking forward to presenting evidence that will prove he did not engage in any misconduct.

    The Swiss Attorney General said on September 25 it had opened a criminal investigation into Blatter concerning a payment of two million Swiss francs from FIFA to Michel Platini in 2011 and a Caribbean television rights deal.

    Blatter, according to Supersport, told a German magazine this week that the Swiss criminal investigation against him was “not correct.”

  • FIFA pick date for presidential poll

    FIFA pick date for presidential poll

    A new FIFA president will be elected at an Extraordinary Congress on February 26 next year, Goal reports.

    The date was confirmed on Monday following an Extraordinary General Meeting of the governing body in Zurich, Switzerland.

    Outgoing president Sepp Blatter laid down his mandate back in June, just four days after he won a fifth consecutive term by beating Prince Ali bin Hussein May election.

    Blatter’s decision to step down came in the wake of a corruption probe in which 14 people, including nine FIFA officials, were indicted on charges of racketeering conspiracy and corruption two days before that election.

    And his presidency will now end in seven months’ time, with UEFA president Michel Platini widely tipped as a front-runner to succeed him.

    Platini has not confirmed whether he will stand but is reported to have the support of Europe, South America and Asia as well as the CONCACAF confederations.

    It is unclear who would potentially run against Platini, although former Brazil international Zico has also stated he would like to stand for the presidency.

  • Blatter to attend 2018 World Cup draws

    Blatter to attend 2018 World Cup draws

    FIFA President Sepp Blatter will attend the 2018 World Cup’s preliminary draws in St Petersburg on July 25, Russia’s Sports Minister, Vitaly Mutko, said on Thursday.

    “Sepp will be coming. He confirmed this to me yesterday. He will also meet with the President of Russia,” supersport.com quoted Mutko as saying in an interview with the newspaper Sport Express.

    Blatter, 79, said on June 2 he would step down from his post after United States and Swiss authorities widened their investigations into bribery and corruption at world soccer’s governing body.

    But he has not been charged with any wrongdoing.

    Swiss authorities are also investigating the hosting rights awarded to Russia and Qatar to organize the 2018 and 2022 editions of FIFA’s flagship tournament.

  • Blatter’s successor to emerge December 16

    Blatter’s successor to emerge December 16

    Sepp Blatter’s 17-year reign as boss of crisis-hit FIFA could come to an end on December 16.

    The BBC gathered that is the likely date for an emergency meeting in Zurich to decide his successor.

    Representatives from all 209 member associations will be invited to the Swiss city to vote in a new presidential election.

    Blatter, 79, quit as president of world football’s governing body just four days after he was re-elected last month.

    The Swiss tended his resignation amid two corruption probes of his organisation.

    Seven FIFA officials were arrested on May 27 following a dawn raid on a luxury hotel in Zurich.

    They were among 14 officials and associates indicted by United States authorities on racketeering and bribery charges.

    Swiss prosecutors have also begun a criminal investigation into how the rights for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups were awarded.

    There is a long list of potential successors for Blatter.

    Among the possible candidates is Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, who lost out to Blatter in last month’s election.

    A final decision on the date for a presidential election is not expected to be made until July, when FIFA will hold an extraordinary meeting of its executive committee.

    But it is believed holding an emergency congress in mid-December is Blatter’s preferred option.

    That would give him just six months to devise and implement the reforms he has promised before leaving the organisation he has been a part of for more than 40 years.

    Domenico Scala, FIFA’s independent head of audit and compliance, outlined last week that the process to replace Blatter would happen between December 2015 and March 2016.

  • Adamu welcomes Blatter’s resignation

    Adamu welcomes Blatter’s resignation

    Former FIFA executive committee member, Dr. Amos Adamu, has said Sepp Blatter did the right thing to resign as president amidst a corruption scandal rocking the world soccer governing body.

    Blatter stepped down on Tuesday four days after winning a record five-year term in the elective congress at FIFA headquarters in Switzerland.

    Adamu told supersport.com that the rot in the world football body has reached an alarming height and nobody can successfully cover it.

    “It’s the right thing to do as people know what is happening there (at FIFA) is not right.

    “Sepp Blatter did the right thing to resign his position as FIFA president in the face of corruption charges among key officials.

    “FIFA has been covering a lot of things, I think it has reached the point where you cannot continue to cover it anymore,” Adamu told supersport.com.

    “The rot in FIFA is like an overheated or overloaded transformer which is bound to explode.

    “I wish him well in his future endeavours either inside or outside football.”

    He took time off to chastise the Swiss football administrator for poor handling of the case that saw him being shut out from football for three years.

    “Blatter handled my case politically. The poor handling of my case was the beginning of his downfall.

    “FIFA claimed that the Nigerian government owed the body a huge sum of money which they are making no move to redeem.

    “I was bluntly told that the witch-hunt was not directly at me per se but where I come from (Nigeria).

    “Coincidentally, Blatter is out right now and I’m in,” said Adamu in direct reference to a recent CAF appointment into the Africa Cup of Nations Organising Committee through 2015 and 2017.”

    Blatter has immediately called for an extraordinary congress to elect his successor.

  • Blatter to step down as FIFA president

    Blatter to step down as FIFA president

    Sepp Blatter said on Tuesday he will step down as president of football’s governing body FIFA amid a corruption scandal.

    In announcing his exit, the 79-year-old Swiss has called an extraordinary FIFA congress “as soon as possible” to elect a new president, the BBC reports.

    Blatter was re-elected last week, despite seven top FIFA officials’ arrest over corruption.

    But he said: “My mandate does not appear to be supported by everybody.”

    FIFA was rocked last week by the arrests on charges of racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering as part of a United States prosecution that also indicted 14 people.

    A separate criminal investigation into how the 2018 and 2022 World Cups were allocated is also under way.

    “I am very much linked to FIFA and its interests. Those interests are dear to me and this is why I am taking this decision,” added Blatter.

    “What counts most to me is the institute of FIFA and football around the world.”