Summary
Deep down, we all knew it was coming didn’t we: Blatter will remain Fifa president for the next four years, after which he will step down. Blatter’s opponents, including Prince Ali and David Gill – who will now relinquish the Fifa vice-presidency he was awarded just a few hours ago – have been squashed. The Swiss reigns supreme.
For more reaction, have a read of
- Blatter re-elected as Fifa president for fifth term
- Sepp Blatter: how the great survivor won another term amid Fifa crisis
Thanks for your emails and tweets, see you in four years. Bye!
Time for a coup, anyone? pic.twitter.com/YmF5WAazdu
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Updated
Oh, hang on, Blatter’s back. He has a bit of banter with Jérôme Valcke, which is a bit awkward to be honest, before embarking on his 479,993th speech of the day.
It is my congress, I have the right to make the closing remarks. This is a very important congress. You see I am in a good mood. I was a little bit nervous today, but now I am the president of everybody, I am the president of the whole Fifa.
This game is important, but more important, enjoy life!
What a way to sign off. He has truly out Sepp-ed himself there.
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Here is the latest news story: Sepp Blatter re-elected as Fifa president for fifth term.
Sepp Blatter has been officially re-elected as Fifa’s president for a fifth term by the world governing body’s 209 member associations.
Blatter, 79, saw off the challenge of Jordan’s Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein at Fifa’s annual Congress in Zurich. In a secret ballot he was re-elected with 133 votes from the 209 voting members. The process was to go to a second round of voting, after Blatter failed to get the 139 votes needed in the first round to win; a two-thirds majority was necessary. Blatter received 133 votes Prince Ali 73 and three ballots were spoiled. However, Prince Ali conceded before the second round of voting took place – when a simple majority would have been enough for either contender to win.
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Blatter now comes to the stage:
I thank you, you have accepted me for the next four years. I will be in command of this boat of Fifa. We will bring it back off shore.” More nautical references!
We need in this committee women. We need ladies.
We won’t touch the World Cup. I am a faithful man, God, Allah, whoever, they will help us to bring back this Fifa. At the end of my (four year) term, I will give Fifa to my successor. It will be robust.
I like you. I like my job. I am not perfect. Nobody is perfect. Together we go. Let’s go Fifa! Let’s go Fifa! [chanting]
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Prince Ali makes a brief speech to the crowd.
I just wanted to thank all of you. It’s been a wonderful journey. I want to especially thank all of you who were brave enough to vote for me.
He leaves the stage, and is hugged and embraced by a number of officials, including Michel Platini.
Prince Ali has withdrawn! Sepp Blatter is confirmed as Fifa president (again)!
No second round of voting is required.
79-year-old Sepp Blatter wins a fifth term as Fifa president.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Updated
“We need another five minutes and in five minutes we should be ready to start again,” says Jérôme Valcke.
“I don’t understand,” emails J.R. in Illinois. “Why doesn’t the person with the simple majority just win if neither guy gets 139 votes? Why vote again? There’s only two of them. It’s not like other candidates will have been eliminated and therefore change the tally for the second vote.”
Because Fifa.
We will have a second round of voting! Blatter gains 133 votes to Prince Ali's 73: not enough for a two-third majority
Of the 209 votes, three were spoiled, and so only 206 counted. A simple majority is required in the second round. If the votes stay the same in this round, Blatter will remain president of Fifa for the next four years, he now needs just 105 of the votes to win.
Of course, it's possible that Ali could now withdraw.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Updated
I've just watched a teller count a pile of 68 ballot papers. Don't know who for. Threshold is 70 for a second round
— Paul Kelso (@pkelso) May 29, 2015
News is breaking that Spain reportedly voted for Blatter. Unconfirmed, of course. So much for Uefa’s unity in backing Prince Ali. So much for a secret ballot.
By my reckoning, this is the 17th thing that Fifa’s congress have voted on today – votes have been cast on everything from keeping Israel’s FA in Fifa to which auditor Fifa will use (it’s KPMG, in case you’re wondering) – but this is the first and only vote in which has not been done electronically.
If you are wondering why they did this …
The US Soccer Federation didn't want electronic voting in this secret FIFA vote in case FIFA could discover who each FA voted for
— Rob Harris (@RobHarris) May 29, 2015
The DJ has stepped it up again. A cover of Frank Sinatra’s Come Dance With Me fills the airwaves. No, really.
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The counting of the votes is taking ages as well. Where are the people of Sunderland South when you need them?
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Do you like football? Do you like admin? Then you are going to LOVE the new Fifa film, United Passions, which stars Gérard Depardieu, Sam Neill and Tim Roth. Roth plays Sepp Blatter. Make of that what you will.
Peter Bradshaw’s review of the film, published on Thursday, can with the header ‘Own goal: Is Fifa’s glory tale the most embarrassing film imaginable?’
The last vote has been cast! The two ballot boxes are moved onto a table in front of the stage, in full view of everyone in the room, where they are opened and and emptied. Let the counting commence! We’ll have a result for you shortly (hopefully).
We’re nearly there: Ukraine, Uruguay, Uganda, UAE …
Remember if neither Blatter or Prince Ali can secure two-thirds of the vite (139 votes out of 209), we will have to go through this whole process again, in which a simple majority will suffice to decide the result. Gulp.
Meanwhile, outside …
Never mind the vote - they're preparing for one hell of a closing ceremony. Giant Swiss cow bells and everything pic.twitter.com/GyOxZ0GiE3
— Steve Scott (@stevescott_itv) May 29, 2015
Not going to lie to you, this is pretty painful. We’re on S: Scotland’s chief executive Stewart Regan casts his vote: he has also announced that he will vote for Prince Ali.
This is taking ages. So much so that the president of the German FA, Wolfgang Niersbach, will now miss his flight back to Germany; he is due to attend the German Cup final between Borussia Dortmund v Wolfsburg in Berlin tomorrow. You can read Raphael Honigstein’s preview piece here: it is Jürgen Klopp’s final game in charge of Dortmund.
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Fifa’s Secretary General Jérôme Valcke is the man in charge, barking instructions from his chair high on the stage, occasionally re-directing lost delegates as they make their way down to the booths.
“Japan, booth one. Israel, booth two. Kazakstan, booth one. Please, please!” he urges.
It feels a little bit like we’re watching a terrible game of bingo.
We’re now on G: Guatemala, Guyana …
‘Summer Sun’ by Chris Coco blares out of the speakers as the representatives line up to cast their votes. It’s been playing on repeat for the last 40 minutes...
Music played in the background of FIFA vote...anybody fancy a nice massage, essential oils, scented candles, fresh ginger tea to follow?
— Philippe Auclair (@PhilippeAuclair) May 29, 2015
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The English’s FA chairman, Greg Dyke, is asked to go to voting booth one. We know who he will be voting for: Prince Ali. Dyke has also backed the idea of a coordinated European boycott of the World Cup in Russia in 2018.
He told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme earlier: “What there is no point in is one or two countries saying, ‘We’re not going to take part,’ because they will carry on with the tournament without them and that is pretty unfair on the fans.
“But if Uefa as a group said, ‘Look, unless you get this sorted we are not going to be in the World Cup,’ then I think that we would join them.”
He also said he thought Blatter would survive. But he said the 79-year-old was irrevocably tainted and his fall was a matter of time.
“I hope he doesn’t win, but if he does I think the events of this week have turned him into a diminished figure and I can’t see him lasting more than a year or two,” Dyke said.
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Chile’s delegate went to the wrong booth. Raucous scenes here in Zurich.
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The order of who votes when is decided alphabetically (of the member nations). We are still on B. Barbados, Belize, Belgium, Bermuda… stay with us.
While we wait for the result, have a read of today’s Fiver, by Scott Murray.
A reminder of exactly how the voting works – bear in mind this could take a while.
Voting takes place in a secret ballot, although several countries and regional groups have already declared who they intend to plump for. There are two booths set up either side of the stage where delegates will cast their vote.
If either candidate achieves two-thirds of the vote in the first round, he wins outright – that’s 139 votes out of 209 member associations.
If a two-thirds majority is not reached, voting goes to a second round, in which a simple majority is enough to win.
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We need a strong leader, an experienced leader. A leader that knows all the ins and out of the situations. We need to work with our political partners. Thank you, and I hope that I will be able to be with you in an hour or two.
Blatter signs off, to a much larger applause than Prince Ali did. The vote is about to begin.
Pockets of disbelieving laughter from press benches at Blatter speech, strong applause from the floor.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Updated
You know me already, I don’t need to introduce myself to you. You know who you’re dealing with. I also know I can count on you. We need to recover our good name. We will start tomorrow morning with this goal in mind.
He’s talking as though he’s already won!
What is this notion of time? Time is infinite as we slice it up. I feel the time I have spent at Fifa is short.”
Wow. Getting deep here Sepp. He’s been president since 1998, by the way.
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Blatter vows to reform Fifa and stand down in four years. He is speaking in French, perhaps appealing to his African base, and is much more animated on the stand, gesticulating passionately and making much more eye contact with the crowd than Prince Ali. He is fired up!
The World Cup is the goose of the golden eggs. We must protect that. We also have the obligation not only to fight against corruption.
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We don’t need revolutions, but we always need evolutions. I am being held accountable for the current state. Ok, I will shoulder it, I will accept this responsibility to fix Fifa, together with you.
I promise through this love that I have for the game. Our Fifa. A strong Fifa, a beautiful Fifa, but I cannot do it alone. I need all of you. Everything that we do and that we will do in the future is based upon trust, respect and fair play.
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Blatter speaks:
It’s certainly with great emotion that I take up the word at end of this 65th congress which takes place in a storm.
Prince Ali signs off with: “I ask you only to listen to your conscious and listen to your hearts.”
He receives lukewarm applause as he returns to his seat. Blatter is next to take the stage…
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I know Fifa’s not just about one man and I will not lead it unilaterally.
If you give me the honour of your vote I will take full responsibility ... Fifa is not a company it is a service organisation.
We cannot ignore the clamour outside our doors. Now it the time to show the world that we are hungry for the world’s respect. I call on you to join me.
I promise to throw open the doors of Fifa house. I will develop a Fifa development program and that is transparent and ‘uphold human rights’. These last few
He places a special emphasis on this last remark.
Today is about honouring the trust invested in each and every one of us. It will take a committed leader to fix this mess that we are in. I will not hide amongst your ranks when things are bad. I will reverse the pyramid.
Follow it live via YouTube here.
Prince Ali bin al-Hussein rises first. He looks assured, although rarely looking up from his notes.
The eyes of the world are upon us, but not the first time. But this time, everything is at stake. We are the guardians of the game – a game that has the power to unite and to heal. We have heard aviricous body that feeds off the game that the world loves. We have heard if our organisation is morally bankrupt. Even the darkest nights are broken by a new dawn. Change is not an event, it is a process.
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Here we go! The election is starting. It will be a slow process though, with each member physically casting a secret vote inside a booth on the stage in the arena.
Before the 209 associations cast their votes, incumbent Sepp Blatter – angling for a fifth term in the top job – and his only rival, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, will each address the Fifa congress for 15 minutes. We will bring you the best of the quotes from both of these speeches.
We will have a 10-minute break before the presidential vote “to prepare the room for the secret ballot,” says Jérôme Valcke. 10 minutes until the big event people!
They're constructing two voting booths as we speak. It's all very literal. Maybe they'll bring an outsized briefcase of cash onstage too.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
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Various new vice-presidents are now being sworn in. David Gill, former Manchester United chief executive and Uefa executive committee member, is one of those to take the stage – remember he said he would reliquish his new Fifa role if Blatter is re-elected as president. There is a considerable coldness between Gill and Blatter as the latter hands over what looks like a membership card. Gill smiles weakly, shakes Blatter’s hand and walks off stage quickly. Awkward.
Fifa congress votes to keep Israel FA in Fifa!
90% vote yes. President of the Palestinian FA, Jibril Rajoub, shakes hands with his Israeli counterpart, Ofer Eini. With the exeption of Rajoub, there are stern faces all round, as the two eyeball each other, but applause echoes around the arena. Blatter smiles, he’s chuffed: “I’m so happy that we are coming out to a solution,” he says.
Vote goes ahead as Blatter wanted. The Palestinians and Israelis shake hands. Not much peace in that handshake.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
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Handing back now to Michael Butler, who will take you through the rest of today’s Fifa congress. Any emails or tweets, please direct them to michael.butler@theguardian.com or @michaelbutler18.
Ofer Eini, Israel FA president:
I don’t want to point any fingers at the Palestinian side. Let’s leave it to the politicians to do politics. Let’s join forces. I want us to work together, I want us to coopoerate, hug and embrace eachother, the differences – if we have any – we should be able to resolve by listening to each other. Everyone is sitting here as friends. There are always disputes.
We propose a joint committee between Israelis, Palestinians and Fifa and I hope we are able to resolve all the problems as they arrive… the begigning of the process that will bring peace to our peoples. Football is a uniting element, not a dividing element. Football is a bridge for peace.
I call upon you to join me on the stage and shake my hand.
Invites Palestinian delegate to shake his hand on stage. He declines. Stand off. Major handshake for peace fail on the cards
— Paul Kelso (@pkelso) May 29, 2015
"It's not an emotional issue, it's life or death for me," yells Palestinean FA chief Rajoub. Still no handshake - he wants vote first.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Updated
Sepp Blatter now invites the Israel FA to respond to the Palestinian proposal withdrawal.
Rajoub delivered an emotional speech, saying “I might be dead in a year” in reference to the reaction from his original motion to suspend Israel.
Palestinean FA chief Rajoub delivers passionate address after withdrawing motion to suspend Israel, says he has received threats.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
The head of the Palestinian FA, Jibril Rajoub, had this to say to congress:
I look forward to the day in which Palestinians, like many others, are enjoying the benefits of the game. Let us look forward and be optimistic. I count on you to vote now, and I thank those who convinced me to drop the suspension [of Israel]. The German president [Angela Merkel] spoke to me... this affected me.
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News coming through that the Palestine FA has agreed to withdraw the motion to have Israel suspended.
Palestine FA has withdrawn its bid to have Israel suspended.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Owen Gibson has got in touch from Zurich to report that Conmebol (the confederation for South America), presumably feeling abandoned by Blatter, looks to now be backing Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein, which would increase the chances of the vote going to a second round.
The latest estimate is that voting may not begin until after 5pm in Zurich (4pm BST), a process which normally takes at least a couple of hours to round up, so any verdict may not be with us until evening in the UK. Here’s a brief reminder of how it all works:
Before the 209 associations cast their votes, incumbent Sepp Blatter – angling for a fifth term in the top job – and his only rival, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, will each address the Fifa congress. Prince Ali, from Jordan, was elected Fifa vice-president for Asia in 2011.
Voting takes place in a secret ballot, although several countries and regional groups have already declared who they intend to plump for.
If either candidate achieves two-thirds of the vote in the first round, he wins outright – that’s 139 out of 209.
If not, voting goes to a second round, in which a simple majority is enough to win.
I’m off for a bit of a break, so here’s Lawrence Ostlere to guide you through the next half an hour or so.
Staying power: Sepp.
Fifa's chief medical officer said during the break that he had given 79-year-old Blatter an annual check up and he was "fit as a fiddle".
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
These allegations of bribery and corruption have put Fifa’s sponsors in a bit of a tough spot – major sponsors including Coca-Cola Co, McDonald’s Corp and Anheuser-Busch InBev have urged Fifa to resolve its problems and repair its image. But Visa have been the most condemning to date:
“As a sponsor, we expect Fifa to take swift and immediate steps to address these issues within its organisation. This starts with rebuilding a culture with strong ethical practices in order to restore the reputation of the game for fans everywhere,” Visa said in a statement.
Nike have also been dragged into the Fifa crisis, and is alleged to have paid tens of millions of dollars into a Swiss account outside a $160m sponsorship deal with Brazil. Here is Chris McGreal to explain.
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Qatar has issued its first statement since Swiss police on Wednesday opened a criminal investigation into Fifa’s awarding of 2022 World Cup on Wednesday. This is taken from AP.
Qatar’s World Cup committee says “our aim through hosting the FIFA World Cup is to utilize the positive power of sport to unify people” and to show the region’s passion for soccer.
The statement said Qatar has “fully complied with every investigation that has been initiated concerning the 2018/2022 bidding process and will continue to do so.” It added “we conducted our bid with integrity.”
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Alfredo Hawit of Honduras has been appointed the new president of Concacaf, after the previous incumbent, Jeffrey Webb was dismissed on Thursday – the Fifa vice president was one of the officials arrested on Wednesday. Jack Warner is also a previous president: big shoes to fill Alfredo!
Whilst we wait for the vote, just to show that sporting administration incompetence in north America isn’t just limited to football/soccer, John Ashdown did this piece on the long and shambolic road of cricket governance in the USA.
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But back to the issue at hand: the Fifa presidential election. Julian Borger has been kind enough to write this neat profile on Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, explaining exactly who Sepp Blatter is up against. Prince Ali has yet to speak to congress today, by the way.
The challenger to Sepp Blatter’s grip on global football is not your average sports executive. Prince Ali bin al-Hussein is the brother of King Abdullah of Jordan and a Sandhurst-trained former special forces officer whose speciality was freefall parachute jumps. According to Hashemite tradition, he is the 43rd generation direct descendant of the prophet Muhammad.
Those supercharged establishment credentials notwithstanding, Prince Ali is also seen as the reformist candidate, and not just because he is taking on a 79-year-old man who has been in Fifa’s top job for 17 years. Ali is 40 years Blatter’s junior, and is the organisation’s youngest vice-president as well as the youngest of the original field of challengers. Now, he is the last one standing.
Are you OK reader? Does your head hurt? All this seriousness can get on top of you, can’t it? Especially on a Friday. Why are we here? Football. So here is a very nice goal to make you feel better, which features in our regular round-up of the week’s best strikes.
Woof.
The Guardian’s Peter Beaumont has more on the Palestinian motion to have Israel suspended from Fifa. With the vote to come in the next couple of hours or so, it looks as though it will go down to the wire.
As we reported this morning there is an agreement on compromise issues on four of the main points in the Palestinian complaint. Israel has offered laissez passers for Palestinian footballers, to help develop Palestinian pitches and to set up a mechanism for disagreements.
Where there is still no agreement - and the deal breaker for both sides - is on the issue of five settlement football teams based in the occupied territories. The Palestinian FA wants them suspended and Israel says this isn’t going to happen. The suggested Fifa compromise is that this is parked at the UN which then decides on the issue. Israel is not keen on this at all since the likely ruling, in line with international law, is that the teams are based in illegal settlements in land under occupation.
All that Blatter has done for now is pushing the issue further along the agenda in the hope of buying a couple more hours for a deal. My sources on the Palestinian delegation have been pretty consistent on this issue today and for the preceding weeks. That doesn’t mean there won’t necessarily be a fudge in the end but it is going to go right up to any vote by the looks of it.
Big Dave Cameron has again called for Sepp Blatter to stand down as Fifa president. The UK’s Prime Minister is in Berlin meeting for talks with Angela Merkel over EU reform.
In my view he should go. You cannot have accusations of corruption at this level and on this scale in this organisation and pretend that the person currently leading it is the right person to take it forward. It cannot be the case. Frankly, what we’ve seen is the ugly side of the beautiful game and he should go. And the sooner that happens, the better.
Only a few years ago David Cameron was expressing "frustration" at BBC screening a Panorama investigation into FIFA corruption.
— Marina Hyde (@MarinaHyde) May 29, 2015
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Here is more on the story, courtesy of PA, that the Serious Fraud Office is examining information relating to possible Fifa corruption.
The Serious Fraud Office says it is actively assessing “material in its possession” relating to Fifa corruption allegations revealed by the FBI this week. It comes after bank accounts at Barclays, HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank were allegedly used to transfer cash as part of the conspiracy.
The three British-based international banks were named on the indictment released by the US Department of Justice, which charged a total of 18 people over alleged bribes totalling more than $150m (£98m) for television rights, sponsorship deals and World Cup votes.
A spokeswoman for the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in London said: “The SFO continues actively to assess material in its possession and has made plain that it stands ready to assist ongoing international criminal investigations.” The SFO would not comment on what the material is or when it first came to its attention.
Payments totalling millions of US dollars allegedly passed through accounts held with the three British banks, with the majority of transactions made in America.
A payment for $500,000 (£326,000) reached the HSBC account of a luxury yacht manufacturer in London in 2013, while $1m was funnelled through a HSBC account in Hong Kong and a Standard Chartered Bank account in New York before ending up in the Cayman Islands in 2012, the charges said.
Some $200,000 (£131,000) were also wired between two Barclays accounts in New York and the Cayman Islands.
Standard Chartered Bank said: “We are aware that two payments cleared by Standard Chartered are mentioned in the indictment. We are looking into those payments and will not be commenting further at this time.” Barclays declined to comment.
I can assure Fifa that all comments below-the-line on this live blog echo Mezenx’s sentiments exactly …
The only comment allowed through FIFA moderation on their main news story pic.twitter.com/ZaacuBUkWO
— Tom Embury-Dennis (@TomEmburyD) May 29, 2015
The vote is expected at around 5pm UK time but a planned press conference with the winner has been postponed until Saturday morning.
Blatter or Prince Ali can only win outright in the first round with the support of three-quarters of those eligible to vote - that’s 139 out of 209 member associations. Each member has one vote in a secret ballot. Because Fifa believe in transparency, remember?!
Should either of the candidates fail to secure that amount of votes, a second round of voting will taken place where simple majority of valid votes will suffice for the victory.
Prince Ali – who has the support of most European associations – reportedly believes that voters could switch sides and get behind him in a second round, once they see that Blatter is not set to win by a landslide. Few share his hope.
If you want to follow the congress live via YouTube, you can do so here.
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There are reports surfacing that Israel and Palestine have come to a deal on the Palestinian call for Israel’s suspension from Fifa. However, The Guardian’s Peter Beaumont has just emailed to say:
“I’ve just spoken to a member of the Palestinian delegation in Zurich who categorically denies there is any deal and says that they still pushing ahead for a vote later today.”
As you were then.
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Lunch is over, and we’re back underway in Zurich. It turns out the bomb threat was just that, a threat. It hasn’t disrupted proceedings.
“An anonymous threat against the Fifa congress was received ... and immediately evaluated,” says Jérôme Valcke. “A bomb threat was received... in consultation we decided to search the room. The premises have been cleared and we can start again.”
Applause echoes round the arena. Good news.
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Here is our latest news story on the developments at Casa Fifa, including a synopsis of Blatter’s speech that he made this morning to the congress, and English FA chairman Greg Dyke’s hopes for a Uefa boycott of the 2018 World Cup.
Fifa president Sepp Blatter has admitted that this week’s wave of arrests and corruption allegations have “unleashed a storm” but improbably called for “unity and team spirit” as he appealed for a fifth term of office.
The delegates of 209 national football associations are preparing to cast their votes later on Friday for the next president of football’s world governing body, in an election overshadowed by serious allegations of corruption made by US prosecutors.
Embattled Fifa president expected to triumph against challenger Prince Ali Bin al-Hussein as Greg Dyke threatens European World Cup boycottRead more
Blatter, the embattled incumbent and favourite, has brushed aside calls to step down over the scandal. He addressed the Fifa congress after vowing to press ahead with presidential elections despite the seriousness of the crisis it faced.
With his usual chutzpah, he appealed to the delegates to campaign against corruption, even as calls for fundamental reform grew and the organisation threatened to fracture.
“Today, I am appealing to a unity and team spirit so we can move forward together. It may not always be easy but it is for this reason we are, today, to tackle the problems that have been created,” said Blatter, who is attempting to win a fifth term in office ahead of his Jordanian challenger Prince Ali bin al-Hussein.
“To solve them, this may not be possible in one single day, it will take some time. But we will do it.”
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The Guardian’s Jerusalem correspondent, Peter Beaumont, has also been in touch:
Israel’s prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu has now weighed in on the expected vote on whether to suspend Israel at Fifa this afternoon. The Palestinian motion - currently still on the agenda for a vote later - alleges discrimination by Israel against Palestinian football and cites the fact that five teams from five illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories are allowed to play in the Israeli league.
Writing on his Facebook page Netanyahu said:
“It is important to understand, the Palestinian move to boycott Israel in the soccer arena is not because of something we did or didn’t do,” writes Netanyahu. “This motion stems from the opposition to our right to our own state.”
For more on this, have a read of Peter’s new story from this morning.
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Oh it’s all kicking off now. We know that the Swiss authorities are investigating the bidding process behind the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but the president of the Congolese FA and Fifa executive committee member, Constant Omari, has now told French radio RTL that Germany bought the right the host the 2006 World Cup!
Germany bought the vote of Oceania, illegally, to earn the organization of the 2006 World Cup, but that’s not spoken about. When it’s Germany, nobody wants to speak about it.
Owen Gibson has emailed this update.
‘Zurich Police confirm that they received bomb threat. All media and delegates were moved out of the main Congress hall at lunch but all the media are still in the separate working room. Fifa general secretary Jérôme Valcke promising an update in 15 minutes.’
Updated
Very interesting development: Serious Fraud Office is “actively assessing material in its possession and ready to assist international criminal investigations” in relation to Fifa.
Serious Fraud Office investigating material it has relating to FIFA corruption
— alex thomson (@alextomo) May 29, 2015
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This is very much unconfirmed, but German news outlet Handelszeitung is reporting that there has been a bomb threat at the Fifa congress in Zurich! They claim to have heard the news from a city police spokesman.
Delegates and media inside the building appear to be unaware. We will have more details on this as soon as they appear.
Reports of a bomb threat to the Congress centre. Fifa promising an update imminently but media centre hasn't been evacuated.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
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Here is our story on exhaustion’s Jack Warner.
Disgraced former Fifa vice-president Jack Warner has been pictured dancing and at a political rally just hours after he was released from prison and taken to hospital in an ambulance citing exhaustion.
Warner was arrested in a sweeping corruption probe launched by US authorities this week and taken to prison in Trinidad’s capital Port of Spain. On Thursday, the 72-year-old appeared in court, where a judge detailed eight counts against him and then set bail at 2.5m Trinidadian dollars (US$395,000). He was also told he must surrender his passport and report to police twice a week.
For the full article, click here.
Whilst we are in Australasia, worth noting that New Zealand’s federation are also expected to back Prince Ali.
@michaelbutler18 I know it may be ultimately pointless but I've never been prouder of NZ football than today voting against Blatter
— Craig Gamble (@Craig_Gamble) May 29, 2015
Naturally, Fifa’s official Twitter feed had this to say about the land of the long white cloud this morning … Blatter will be delighted!
GALLERY: The #U20WC has landed in one of the world's most beautiful countries - New Zealand. http://t.co/UpFNq4b2Qs pic.twitter.com/mfQWJash7p
— FIFA.com (@FIFAcom) May 29, 2015
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As a reminder, Australia is one of the few associations worldwide to publicly come out and oppose Blatter’s re-election. If you want a bit more background on their role in deciding today’s election, have a go on Scott McIntyre’s piece: ‘Australia’s move against Sepp Blatter in Fifa vote is honourable – but risky.’
Fifa whistleblower Bonita Mersiades was the head of communications for Australia’s bid to host the 2022 World Cup and offered evidence in Fifa’s probe into the bidding process for that tournament, which was awarded to Qatar, and the 2018 finals, which went to Russia.
Rather than being commended for her courage, Mersiades’ reliability as a witness was questioned and her evidence dismissed in a summary of the investigation released by Judge Hans-Joachim Eckert of Fifa’s ethics committee six months ago.
Here is an article, written in November by Mersiades for The Guardian, in response to being her evidence being dismissed. Worth a read.
It appears she feels more than a little vindicated following this week’s events.
I know I’ve always been telling the truth, it’s about what I know,” she told Reuters on Friday. “It’s about the Fifa environment. Quite clearly this type of behaviour had been going of for decades. The issue that I have been advocating for some time is reform of Fifa.
“That (behaviour) is what many people have been focusing on for years and trying to change. Some of those people have been dismissed, called discredited morons. I give no apology for wanting the game run to the highest standards of transparency and accountability.”
I know you are all fretting over the health of Jack Warner, after he left jail in Trinidad in an ambulance on Thursday, apparently suffering from exhaustion. You’ll be relieved to know that he is alive and well …
Less than 24 hours after leaving prison in an ambulance, Jack Warner's Lazarus-like recovery continues. #prayforjack pic.twitter.com/ckUeNEflyu
— James Corbett (@james_corbett) May 29, 2015
Shots fired!
@michaelbutler18 They'll need to update their financial report to include bail money!
— EvanRees (@EvanRees) May 29, 2015
Zing!
Congress has broken for lunch. In true football style, it will take 90 minutes to complete and will resume at 1.30pm in Zurich, which is 12.30pm BST. We will, of course, continue to distract you from doing any of your actual work today.
I wonder what’s on the menu?
Following the publication of that financial report, Domenico Scala, Fifa’s audit & compliance chair, has been speaking.
“It is the leader’s tone at the top that ensures it is embedded at all levels. This tone must be honest.”
Domenico Scala, head of audit and finance committee, speaks sense on Fifa's need for culture change. Trouble is, we've heard it all before.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
The congress is currently voting on whether to retain KMPG as the organisation’s official auditors. They’ve voted yes.
Page six of that report, meanwhile, is simply this:
Fifa have published their 2014 Financial report, which is just the kind of light reading that your Friday needs.
2014 Financial Report http://t.co/oOfwNObqjQ
— FIFA Media (@fifamedia) May 29, 2015
It does include these pretty things. Everything appears to be above board then (that will be the last nautical reference, I promise).
Meanwhile, not available on Fifa’s report…
. @michaelbutler18 not only financial scandal but look at this infographic pic.twitter.com/jDqCyAEXlf
— Olivia O'Sullivan (@Olivia_os) May 29, 2015
Updated
More from Blatter:
“The committees I mentioned at Fifa cannot control all 300m and all fans in the world. That is impossible. You can’t just ask people to behave ethically just like that”
Nore sure that’s the issue here Sepp. People are just wondering if you can get your own house in order. “Blatter cant keep an eye on everybody (or can he?),” emails Mark Plip. “BUT HE CAN KEEP AN EYE ON HIS VICE-PRESIDENTS AND HIS COMMITTEES!!!!”
Let’s catch up with a couple more quotes from Blatter’s speech this morning. And he’s gone all aquatic.
“Fifa has become a business. It is no longer a club as it is in the Swiss civil code, like a swimming club or a fishing club.”
A nautical metaphor. Bingo! "Join us to put Fifa back on the right track, where the boats will stop rocking and go placidly into port."
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
“Isn’t Fifa a registered charity?” emails Adrian Dutch. “If dear Sepp has now gone on record that it’s a business, shouldn’t they be paying a bit of tax now?”
Updated
Hello everyone. Football administration aye … who knew? If you have any thoughts, do wing me an email on michael.butler@theguardian.com or tweet me @michaelbutler18.
That’s all from Mr Blatter for now, and with that I’ll hand over to Michael Butler. In the meantime catch up with our global round-up of the latest reaction to the crisis at Fifa.
That was a long speech by Blatter which covered some of the same ground as his opening of the 65th congress earlier. In total he has spoken for well over 30 minutes so far this morning in Zurich – Prince Ali is yet to address the audience. Here’s some of the reaction on the ground from British journalists:
Blatter says Fifa now has lots of committees. Ignoring fact some of those arrested served on those committees.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
That was possibly the worst speech I've ever heard. 22 mins of deluded, rambling, irrelevant, self-serving Blatter blather. ***APPLAUSE***
— Oliver Kay (@OliverKayTimes) May 29, 2015
Blatter telling congress about how much lovely broadcasters and sponsors bring in to Fifa (which he then gives to members). #fifa
— Ben Rumsby (@ben_rumsby) May 29, 2015
As his president’s speech draws to a close, Blatter says:
It is not good for all this to occur two days before the election. I’m not going to use the word coincidence but I do have a small question mark.
Blatter continues:
We are at a turning point and we need to pull together and move forward. We cannot constantly supervise everybody in football. We have 209 members and 300m active participants, men and women. And with families, friend, we reach a figure of 1.6bn people that are directly touched. Our stat from last year, the German press said we are wrong. And though often Germans tell Fifa it is wrong, we are at 1.6bn.
We are a very important entity. With popularity comes responsibly. How can everybody take responsibility? There are limits on the pitch of the goal-lines, the sidelines, there’s a referee and a time limit. Outside the pitches there are no geographgical limits, no time limits, no referee.
So who needs to supervise this situation? At Fifa we have controls through our reforms. We set up the ethics committee with two chambers. We have separations of power: I welcome the chairman of the appeals committee and the disciplinary committee.
They are here with us today so they need to be the ones that keep an eye on all these people – and that is impossible.
Sepp Blatter gives the president’s address:
You will know that right now we are going through troubling times. I will not call in unprecedented – also in election congresses such as 2002. These events have cast a shadow so let’s try to lift that shadow. Let’s try to lift our spirits. We can’t let the reputation of football be dragged through the mud like that. Because they are truly at fault, especially if they are found guilty.
They are not the entire organisation; certain individuals who have forgotten that Fifa is based on respect discipline and a team sport with the same goal. We need to be singing from the same song sheet, especially when we talk of the character of the organisation. It’s our goal to share this respect with all of you.
In case you missed it, here’s a quick summary of what happened, and to whom, on Wednesday:
What happened?
Fifa, the world governing body of football, has been plunged into crisis after a number of its top officials were arrested at a hotel in Switzerland on suspicion of receiving bribes totalling $100m (£65m). The dawn arrests in Zurich, where the organisation is based, came hours before Swiss prosecutors announced a criminal investigation into the 2018 and 2022 football World Cup bids. Fifa – the International Federation of Association Football - is in charge of organising football’s major tournaments, including the World Cup, which takes place every four years.
Who was arrested?
Nine Fifa officials and four executives of sports management companies were arrested, according to the US Department of Justice. The suspects were named as:
- Jack Warner, the former Fifa vice-president
- Jeffrey Webb, current Fifa vice-president and president of the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf)
- Eugenio Figueredo, current Fifa vice-president and executive committee member
- Eduardo Li, current Fifa executive committee member-elect
- Julio Rocha, current Fifa development officer
- Rafael Esquivel, president of the Venezuelan Football Federation
- José Maria Marin, ex-president of the Brazilian Football Confederation
- Costas Takkas, current attaché to the Concacaf president Jeffrey Webb
According to the US Department of Justice, the sports marketing executives arrested were: Alejandro Burzaco, the controlling pincipal of Argentinian sports marketing firm Torneos y Competencias S.A; Aaron Davidson, president of Traffic Sports USA; Hugo and Mariano Jinkis, controlling principals of Argentinian sports marketing firm Full Play Group S.A.
Was Fifa president Sepp Blatter arrested?
No. Fifa spokesman Walter de Gregorio told the Associated Press: “He is not involved at all.”
This graphic of FIFA leadership is extraordinary. pic.twitter.com/tTLOyrJKCa
— David McKenzie (@McKenzieCNN) May 29, 2015
Updated
To recap on how the voting will work, before the 209 associations cast their votes, incumbent Sepp Blatter – angling for a fifth term in the top job – and his only rival, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, will each address the Fifa congress. Prince Ali, from Jordan, was elected Fifa vice-president for Asia in 2011.
Voting takes place in a secret ballot, although several countries and regional groups have already declared who they intend to plump for.
If either candidate achieves two-thirds of the vote in the first round, he wins outright – that’s 139 out of 209.
If not, voting goes to a second round, in which a simple majority is enough to win.
FIFA Secretary General confirms 209 member associations present @ #FIFACongress pic.twitter.com/FpxW3s0Ry1
— FIFA Media (@fifamedia) May 29, 2015
Michel Platini’s suggestion yesterday that Uefa could consider a boycott of the 2018 World Cup has understandably caused a stir. The Guardian’s Damien Gayle has more:
The World Cup would go on even in the face of a boycott by Europe’s football federation, the head of Nigeria’s national association said today.
“A World Cup without [Europe], it would be regrettable. But I assure you, it will go on,” said Amaju Pinnick, president of the Nigerian Football Association, as he backed Sepp Blatter to remain as the sport’s global chief.
Pinnick said Uefa’s stance over the Blatter’s position following the latest corruption scandal to embroil Fifa was “too extreme”. Uefa president Michel Platini yesterday asked Blatter to stand aside from re-election.
After Blatter insisted he would still seek a fifth four-year term as president of Fifa, Platini told a press conference that Europe could boycott the sporting body.
Pinnick said he didn’t believe Blatter could be held responsible for the actions of officials. “If you listen to [Blatter’s] speech yesterday you will know what he said is he can’t monitor everybody,” Pinnick said.
Updated
OH MY GOD. At Fifa congress, they' just tested e-voting system by asking delegates if Germany won World Cup. Five per cent said no! #FIFA
— Oliver Kay (@OliverKayTimes) May 29, 2015
Palestinian protestors burst in shouting "red card for Fifa" before being bustled away by security.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Sepp Blatter opens the 65th Fifa congress:
The events on Wednesday unleashed a storm and it was even questioned whether this congress would take place or the agenda may be changed. Today I am appealing to unity and a team spirit so we can move forward together. It may not always be easy but it is this reason that we are here today. We are here to solve [these problems]. This may not happen in one day but we are starting and we will do it with the members of the national associations because you are the ambassadors of our football. You have the power to change the face of Fifa. You have the power in your hearts, a power you can not buy on the markets.
Let’s get down to work. Let us not just talk about problems, let us go and solve them. let us move forward. The important point is transparency. The important point is where is our football? Where does Fifa stand in the world? It is the fight against corruption, match fixing, and racism – which we still have in our game and it hurts. We will naturally talk about development but that all belongs together. We have a chance to create unity.
We will have the possibility to play and to apply the handshake for peace and this will be under item 15 on the agenda. We have a problem to solve. We should find a solution which will finally satisfy.
I like would like to hold this congress under Fifa’s characteristics: discipline, respect and fair play. It is like a game and we are playing football. But we have no time limit, we have until the evening, or tomorrow. There are the laws of the game: they are the statutes. We have no referee. You are the referees [the delegates in the room]. Let us show the world we are able to run our institution and we can do that together. With these words I solemnly open the 65th congress of Fifa.
Updated
Fifa’s 65th congress is under way in Zurich where, following Friday’s arrests, only 25 of the 28 delegates have taken their place on stage. There are 18 points on the agenda and 18th will be the vote for presidency.
Updated
Protest over treatment of migrant workers in Qatar ahead of 2022 World Cup, as reported on extensively by Guardian. pic.twitter.com/ju5PEgVtCM
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Hello, Lawrence Ostlere here to take the helm for a while, and the first thing to report is that Fifa have postponed today’s post-vote press conference until tomorrow, meaning the winner will not face the media today.
Former South African president Thabo Mbeki has denied that any public money was used to bribe Fifa officials in his country’s bid for the 2010 World Cup.
In a statement, Mbeki said:
As former president of the Republic of South Africa, I have noted reports alleging that bribes were solicited and paid to some officials of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association [Fifa] in exchange for our country to host the 2010 soccer World Cup.
I am not aware of anybody who solicited a bribe from the government for the purpose of our country being awarded the right to host the World Cup.
As minister of sport and recreation Fikile Mbalula has stated on behalf of the government, no public money was ever used to pay a bribe.
I wish to state that the government that I had the privilege to lead would never have paid any bribe even if it were solicited.
Mbeki was president from 1999 to 2008, and played a prominent role in campaigning for South Africa to win the World Cup bid – the first country on the African continent to host the tournament.
Greg Dyke: Europe could boycott 2018 World Cup
English FA chairman Greg Dyke has backed the idea of a co-ordinated European boycott of the World Cup in Russia in 2018.
He told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme (I’ve taken the quotes from Press Association):
What there is no point in is one or two countries saying ‘We’re not going to take part’ because they will carry on with the tournament without them and that is pretty unfair on the fans.
But if Uefa as a group said ‘Look, unless you get this sorted we are not going to be in the World Cup’ then I think that we would join them.
He made similar comments to Sky Sports News, saying:
There would be no point pulling England out if everyone else stays in. It would have no impact. It would just be forgotten.
But if you could pull Uefa out, that might have an impact. If Blatter gets re-elected, then that should be discussed.
I thought the evidence the Americans produced was devastating and I don’t think Blatter can survive that. He might survive this weekend but I don’t think he can survive in the long term.
During his period in charge, the level of corruption has been unacceptable. It’s just frightening.
Of Sepp Blatter’s chances in today’s vote, Dyke said to Radio 4:
I hope he doesn’t win but if he does I think the events of this week have turned him into a diminished figure and I can’t see him lasting more than a year or two.
Mr Blatter’s statement yesterday in which he basically said ‘Leave it to me, I will clean it up’ - nobody is going to believe that.
And I think it is quite ominous for him when the attorney general in America says this is only the beginning, not the end.
Updated
Aside from the presidential election, Fifa congress will also today tackle a call by the Palestinian Football Association for a vote demanding the suspension of Israel from the world football organisation.
The Guardian’s Jerusalem correspondent, Peter Beaumont, reports:
Despite last-ditch attempts at mediation by world football officials, the Palestinian delegation insisted it would push for a vote unless Israel expels five teams based in illegal Israeli settlements from its football league.
The five teams are Ma’aleh Adumim, Ariel, Kiryat Arba, Bik’at Hayarden and Givat Ze’ev, which play in Israel’s lower divisions.
“Compromise is possible on issues like movement of [Palestinian] players and equipment, if a mechanism can be agreed,” a member of the Palestinian delegation told the Guardian. “But no compromise is possible on the settlement teams’ continued playing in Israel’s league.”
The comments came as it appeared that the Palestinian vote might require less than the widely reported 75% of the 209 member delegations to back Israel’s suspension.
Palestinian officials believe that – in the first instance – they require only a straight majority under Fifa rules, with 75% being required to ratify and renew a suspension. If the vote does takes place, it will be a secret ballot.
Fifa officials have previously insisted a 75% majority was required.
You can read the full report here.
Once you’ve read through our global round-up, here’s your quick catch-up of Guardian Fifa coverage:
- Blatter denies responsibility and rebuffs Platini plea to resign
- Owen Gibson’s message to Blatter: Finally do the right thing. Go
- US Soccer says it will vote against Sepp Blatter in Fifa election
- Australia’s move against Sepp Blatter is honourable – but risky
- Australian police to look into $500,000 paid to Jack Warner
Who will vote for Blatter?
It’s widely expected that Blatter will sail off with his fifth presidential term today, despite the eruption this week of corruption allegations that have long haunted his time as Fifa’s chief.
So who will be voting for him?
North and Central America and Caribbean: 35 votes
Concacaf gained prominence within Fifa under the leadership of Trinidad and Tobago’s Jack Warner, one of those arrested this week. Most Concacaf members are expected to vote for Blatter today. But the US and Canada say they will vote for Prince Ali.
(An enlightening aside: at a Concacaf meeting in April, Osiris Guzman, president of the Dominican football federation, compared Blatter to Moses, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King, Jesus and Nelson Mandela. Ahem.)
Africa: 54 votes
The Confederation of African Football issued a statement on Thursday opposing calls for the election to be delayed and reiterating its intention to vote for Blatter. It also offered “our full support to the measures initiated by Fifa in recent years in improving good governance”.
Asia: 46 votes
The Asian Football Confederation isn’t backing the candidate from its own region, but instead is opting for … Blatter. It also repeated this week that it didn’t think the arrests were any reason to postpone the election or reconsider its favoured candidate.
However, Frank Lowy, the chairman of Football Federation Australia (which jumped ship from the Oceania group in 2011), said he would vote for Prince Ali: “FFA believes that profound change within Fifa is needed.”
South America: 10 votes
South America – despite the presence of giants Brazil and Argentina – has fewer votes than any other confederation. It’s expected to hand them to Blatter.
Oceania: 11 votes
A statement from the group in January said all 11 nations planned to vote for Blatter. But on Friday, New Zealand Football announced it would break ranks and support Prince Ali.
And (mostly) in the Prince Ali corner … Europe: 53 votes
Uefa president Michel Platini said he estimates at least 45 of the European FAs will opt for Prince Ali. Russia and Spain will go for Blatter. Platini asked Blatter on Thursday to consider stepping aside, but the Fifa boss decided he didn’t fancy that. David Gill, a board member of Uefa and and the English FA, has said he won’t take up his role as vice-president of Fifa if Blatter wins.
Updated
When is the vote and how does it work?
The Fifa congress will begin at 8.30am UK time (9.30am in Zurich).
There are several items on the agenda – including “suspension or expulsion of a member” and “president’s address” – before item 17: election of the president. We could see the results of that election around 4pm UK time.
Before the 209 associations cast their votes, incumbent Sepp Blatter – angling for a fifth term in the top job – and his only rival, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, will each address the Fifa congress. Prince Ali, from Jordan, was elected Fifa vice-president for Asia in 2011.
Voting takes place in a secret ballot, although several countries and regional groups have already declared who they intend to plump for.
If either candidate achieves two-thirds of the vote in the first round, he wins outright – that’s 139 out of 209.
If not, voting goes to a second round, in which a simple majority is enough to win.
Article 27 of the Fifa statutes sets out that:
- The president will be elected by secret ballot during the Fifa congress for a period of four years.
- There is no age limit for presidency candidates [Blatter is 79; Prince Ali 39].
- The electoral body is composed of the 209 federation members.
- For a win in the first round of voting, a candidate must secure two-thirds of the votes of eligible voting members present.
- Should a second round vote be necessary, a simple majority of valid votes will suffice.
Opening summary
Welcome to Friday’s Fifa live blog, as voting is set to begin in a presidential election that under-siege incumbent Sepp Blatter is nonetheless expected to win handsomely.
Before that, here’s a global round-up of all the latest from the last few hours:
Trinidad and Tobago
Jack Warner, one of the former officials arrested this week, has left jail in Trinidad in an ambulance, apparently suffering from exhaustion.
After a bit of a rest, Warner donned a cap and a garland of flowers to give a speech before a crowd of supporters in the district he represents as a member of parliament.
“If I have been thieving Fifa money for 30 years, who give me the money? How come he is not charged? Why only persons from third world countries have been charged?”
Warner is now free on $395,000 bail and will be back in court in July.
Australia
Meanwhile, Australian police said they had been asked to investigate a payment of $500,000 by Football Federation Australia to Warner. The FFA claimed the payment was made as part of “mandatory” Fifa bidding criteria during the country’s failed bid for the 2022 World Cup but was misappropriated by Warner.
The FFA denies any wrongdoing, saying the payment in 2010 was intended to fund a feasibility study for a “centre of excellence” project in the Caribbean. A 2013 investigation by Concacaf found the payment was misappropriated by Warner.
Brazil
Somewhat mysteriously, Marco Polo Del Nero, head of the Brazilian soccer confederation and a Fifa executive committee member, has left Zurich ahead of the vote to return to Brazil.
Fifa spokeswoman Delia Fischer said Del Nero left Switzerland on Thursday, but did not say why.
Del Nero was due to attend congress today and oversee Brazil’s vote in the election.
Brazil unrepresented at Fifa vote after Marin arrested and Del Nero flit. Football has been rotten in home of the beautiful game for years.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 29, 2015
Meanwhile, Brazilian police have launched an investigation into corruption in its own football ranks, as the country’s senate – prompted by senator and former player, Romario, who called the 2014 World Cup “the biggest heist in the history of Brazil” – opened a formal inquiry into alleged bribes paid to obtain contracts with the Brazilian Soccer Federation (CBF).
Former CBF president José Maria Marin was among those charged this week; José Hawilla, the Brazilian founder of sports marketing company Traffic Group, has pled guilty to US corruption charges. José Margulies, who headed two offshore companies involved in broadcasting of matches, was also named in the US justice department indictment, but he told a Brazilian radio station he was on holiday in Germany and had not been contacted by investigators.
The CBF removed Marin’s name from the facade of its Rio de Janeiro headquarters on Thursday.
Argentina
An Argentine judge has ordered the arrest of three businessmen named in the US indictment: Alejandro Burzaco, Hugo Jinkis and his son Mariano Jinkis. The US justice department alleges that the three conspired to win lucrative media rights contracts from regional federations through the payment of up to $110m in bribes.
Paraguay
Officials said they were examining a request from the US to extradite Nicolás Leoz, former president of the South American football confederation. Leoz, 86, has been in hospital being treated for flu and high blood pressure.
Kuwait
Sheikh Ahmad al Fahad al Sabah of Kuwait, who is shortly to join Fifa’s executive, has called this week’s arrests a “Hollywood-style” operation, saying it was suspicious that the arrests came two days before the presidential election.
“Many people are asking questions about these events but no one has said it, because they are scared of the FBI,” he said. “Why did they want to do it before the congress? They could have done it six weeks before.
“If England and America had secured the 2018 and 2022 World Cups would this procedure have been the same? These questions need to be raised and we have the right to hear an explanation.”
He said no one within Fifa doubted that Blatter would win today: “It is just a question will it be the first or second round.”
New Zealand
New Zealand Football has announced it will support Blatter’s rival presidential candidate, saying: “The executive committee believes that real change can only be implemented with a new president in place, and accordingly, we have opted to support the election of Prince Ali Bin al-Hussein.”
New Zealand football chief executive Andy Martin had earlier hinted his country might not follow the rest of the Oceania confederation in voting for Blatter. “It’s every man for himself,” Martin said. “We have done very well under the current regime but that doesn’t mean things can’t change.
“We have to assess the merits of both candidates. We are here trying to do the best we can for football in New Zealand. We are mindful we have to get this right.”
United States
The US says it will vote for Prince Ali. “I’ve gotten to know Prince Ali well over the last couple of years. He has been a really active member of the executive committee and an active proponent of reform at Fifa,” US Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati said.
“I think you’ll see a lot closer vote tomorrow than people would have projected some weeks ago.”
Canada
Canadian Soccer Association president Victor Montagliani tweeted to announce that Canada will also vote for Ali.
Our BoD met and has made the decision of voting for Prince Bin Ali Hussein as we cannot support the current political leadership of FIFA.
— Victor Montagliani (@VicMontagliani) May 28, 2015
And the chairman of Fifa’s ethics committee has told Sky News he is pleased the US justice department is probing the governing body’s affairs.
Hans Joachim-Eckert said: “I think it will help and they will give me the results of the FBI investigation, and that will help me.”
Updated
