If Sepp Blatter is re-elected as the president of Fifa, the organization will be unlikely to change its ways and undergo governance reform, Michael Hershman, a former member of Fifa’s independent governance committee and co-founder of Transparency International, told the Guardian on Thursday.
“Regardless of the rules, policies and procedures that the Fifa puts in place, if there is not a cultural change in the organization, I don’t expect the nature of the organization to change,” Hershman said.
“This is an organization that has been in large part ruled, for years now, by fear. Leadership with integrity and honesty, leadership that values transparency and accountability, does not rule by fear and intimidation.
“Until you get leadership in that has personal integrity, that does not continue to lie, does not continue to mislead, you are not going to get the people that are affiliated with Fifa to change their own behavior.”
Fifa is embroiled in the worst corruption scandal in its 111-year history. On Thursday, a day after Swiss authorities arrested nine officials on corruption charges and opened criminal proceedings over the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar, Blatter refused to step down as president and instead vowed to lead the organization through the crisis and towards change.
“I know many people hold me ultimately responsible for the action and reputation of the global football community, whether it is a decision for the hosting of the World Cup or corruption scandal,” Blatter said on the eve of the election to select the next Fifa president.
“We, or I, cannot monitor everyone all the time. If people want to do wrong they will also try to hide it. But it must fall to me to bear the responsibility for the reputation and the wellbeing of our organization and to find a way forward to fix things.”
But the only way forward for Fifa is to replace Blatter, said Hershman. He was one of the 10 members of Fifa’s independent governance committee, which was created in 2011 to oversee governance reform with a focus on compliance and ethics and to make final recommendations to the executive committee.
“Unfortunately, not all of our recommendations were accepted by Fifa,” Hershman said. “And so when Sepp Blatter gets up as he did today and says Fifa must police itself – he is out of touch with reality.
“Fifa has failed at policing itself. Failed miserably. And furthermore, Fifa under his leadership has not implemented all the recommendations of our governance committee. How many more chances should he expect to get?”
If Blatter is re-elected on Friday, he will serve for a fifth term.
Hershman is not the only observer who doubts whether Blatter can lead Fifa to redemption.
“Given that he was the head of Fifa during much of the misconduct, I doubt there will be a turnaround under his leadership,” said Peter Henning, a law professor at Wayne State University and former senior attorney with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the criminal division of the US Department of Justice.
“The Garcia report on the awarding of the 2022 World Cup remains under seal,” Henning added, “and so any push for transparency seems to be blocked. But you never know if this might spur greater action. It is possible, although probably not very likely.”
Some high-ranking officials in international football – including UEFA chief Michel Platini and the former Manchester United chief executive David Gill – have called on Blatter to resign. Gill, who was to take up a vice-presidency position on the Fifa executive committee on Friday, has said he will not do so if Blatter wins.
In Friday’s election, Blatter will face Prince Ali Bin al-Hussein of Jordan. To avoid multiple rounds of voting, the winning candidate needs votes from two-thirds of Fifa’s 209-member associations.
“If they re-elect Sepp Blatter, they deserve what they get,” said Hershman. “That will be continued scrutiny, continued ridicule, loss of sponsorships and perhaps the breakup of Fifa.”
