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Tag: Fifa

  • FIFA ban Brazilian FA president for life

    The president of the Brazilian FA has been banned for life for taking bribes.

    He was found guilty of receiving bribes in exchange for his role in awarding contracts to companies for the media and marketing rights to various football tournaments, including the Copa America, the Copa Libertadores and the Copa do Brasil.

    The 76-year-old was charged by American authorities in 2015 over money-laundering allegations.

    Fifa have barred him from all football-related activity at national and international level, and fined him 1m Swiss francs (£733,000).

    A statement from Fifa read: “The investigation against Mr Del Nero was opened on November 23 2015 and referred…. to schemes in which he received bribes in exchange for his role in awarding contracts to companies for the media and marketing rights to various football tournaments, including the Copa America, the Copa Libertadores and the Copa do Brasil.

    “The adjudicatory chamber agreed with the recommendations of the investigatory chamber and found Mr Del Nero guilty of having violated art. 21 (Bribery and corruption), art. 20 (Offering and accepting gifts and other benefits), art. 19 (Conflicts of interest), art. 15 (Loyalty), and art. 13 (General rules of conduct) of the FIFA Code of Ethics. As a consequence, Mr Del Nero is banned for life from all football-related activities (administrative, sports or any other) at both national and international level.”

  • Trump announces intention of U.S. to bid for 2026 World Cup

    U.S. President Donald Trump has announced the intention to bid for the 2026 World Cup in conjunction with Canada and Mexico.

    Trump, while announcing the bid on his Twitter handle, warned against opposition from countries that the U.S. has always supported.

    Morocco is currently challenging the North American bid for the first 48-team World Cup in 2026.

    The president suggested that the U.S. was considering withdrawing support for countries that are not reciprocating the America’s gestures.

    “The U.S. has put together a STRONG bid with Canada and Mexico for the 2026 World Cup.

    ” It would be a shame if countries that we always support were to lobby against the U.S. bid.

    “Why should we be supporting these countries when they don’t support us (including at the United Nations)? Trump tweeted.

    The 2018 edition of the World Cup would be hosted by Russia.

    On Dec. 2, 2010, FIFA president Sepp Blatter announced the winning bids at FIFA’s headquarters in Zurich.

    While Russia was chosen to host the 2018 World Cup, Qatar was chosen to host the 2022 World Cup.

  • Russia 2018: VAR replays to be shown on big screens at the World Cup

    Video assistant referees (VAR) replays of incidents will be shown on big screens at the 2018 FIFA World cup in Russia.

    VAR will be used at a World Cup for the first time in Russia despite criticism of its use in domestic competition.

    One issue has been that fans have been unable to see replays shown on television that referees use to make their decision, leading to confusion.

    But this summer the crowd will also be told when a decision is being reviewed and why a decision has been reached.

    However the replays will not be shown inside the ground while the referee is making a decision, only afterwards so the official is not influenced by the crowd, football’s world governing body Fifa has announced.

    VAR has been trialled in some domestic English cup games this season, as well as in Germany and Italy, and Fifa confirmed in March the system would be used at the World Cup, starting in June.

    The system was described as “comical” and “embarrassing” after Tottenham’s FA Cup win over Rochdale in late February, when a goal was disallowed and a converted penalty overturned.

    On Monday, a penalty was awarded after players had already left the pitchfor half-time in Mainz’s Bundesliga win over relegation rivals Freiburg.

    Fifa’s announcement that replays will be shown on big screens at the World Cup comes a day after Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin said VAR needed further testing before it would be used in European football’s Champions League competition.

    “I have some fear for the World Cup, where we will have referees who have never officiated with the VAR,” Ceferin told Italian paper Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview.

    Fifa’s referees’ chief and former World Cup final referee Pierluigi Collina said the system “is about avoiding clear and obvious major errors”.

    “It’s not a question of refereeing the match with technology,” he added. “The goal has never been to check every minor incident.”

    BBC

  • UEFA president ‘worried’ over use of VAR at World Cup

    UEFA President, Aleksander Ceferin has expressed concern over the decision to employ the video replay system (VAR) at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

    He also said the technology still needed more testing before it can be considered for use in the Champions League.

    World football governing body, FIFA voted in March to deploy VAR at the June-July tournament in Russia.

    It was only two weeks after its use was approved by IFAB, the organisation responsible for rule changes in the sport.

    “I have some fear for the World Cup, where we will have referees who have never officiated with the VAR,” Ceferin told Italian paper Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview.

    “I hope there are no scandals or problems,”

    Ceferin has already said that VAR would not be used in the Champions League next season.

    “The Champions League is like a Ferrari or a Porsche: you cannot drive it right away, you need training, offline testing. And everyone has to understand how it works,” he said.

    “It’s too early for VAR. That doesn’t mean we will never have it as the process is inevitable… We’ll have it one day in the Champions League but there’s no rush.”

    VAR is already being used in Serie A, the Bundesliga and Portugal’s Primeira Liga this season, among others.

    IFAB insists it has reduced refereeing mistakes but critics say there has been confusion in a number of matches.

    Goals have been annulled several minutes after being scored — with the teams waiting to restart — and penalties revoked with the ball on the spot.

    Another criticism is that the spectators are not kept informed of what is happening when a decision is reviewed.

    Ceferin said that VAR would not have made any difference in last week’s Champions League quarter-final between Real Madrid and Juventus, where a soft stoppage-time penalty led to the Spanish side advancing 4-3 on aggregate.

    “What would have changed with VAR? Nothing. There are those who have watched it 20 times, I’ve watched it 50, but for half the people it’s a penalty and for the other half, it isn’t.”

    Reuters

  • Russia to cooperate with FIFA probe into racist chants during France friendly

    Russia will cooperate with a FIFA investigation into racist abuse directed at French players by Russian fans during a pre-World Cup friendly last month, a Russian soccer official said on Monday.

    Alexei Smertin, the Russian Football Union’s anti-discrimination inspector, said global soccer’s governing body had informed it about the launch of an investigation into the incident.

    “The Russian Football Union is ready to take an active part in it (the FIFA probe) and is already conducting an internal investigation,” Smertin said in a statement carried by Russian news agencies.

    A Reuters photographer at pitch level for France’s 3-1 win over Russia in St Petersburg heard monkey chants directed at French players on several occasions, including when midfielder N’Golo Kante came to the sideline for a throw-in.
    Russia has pledged to crack down on racism as the country faces increased scrutiny ahead of this year’s World Cup, which it will host from June 14 to July 15 in 11 cities including Moscow, St Petersburg and Sochi.

    There have been other reported cases of racist abuse, however, in the run-up to the tournament.

    At CSKA Moscow’s Europa League quarter-final match against Arsenal last week, a Reuters photographer heard dozens of supporters make monkey chants aimed at some of Arsenal’s black players.

    CSKA dismissed the Reuters account and said in a statement that they were “outraged” by what they called a “slanderous” report.

    European soccer’s governing body, UEFA, told Reuters last week that no racist behavior had been reported to it by match officials at the game.

     

  • FIFA to commence inspection on Morocco’s World Cup bid

    FIFA to commence inspection on Morocco’s World Cup bid

    Football governing body, FIFA inspectors arrived in Morocco on Monday ahead of a three-day assessment of the north African country’s ability to host the 2026 World Cup, the local bid committee said.

    The five-member FIFA Task Force will begin its inspection on Tuesday, visiting stadiums, training facilities, fan sites and media centres.

    “Morocco is offering FIFA and the global football family an innovative and compact concept to ensure operational efficiency, outstanding profitability and a lasting legacy in Morocco and Africa,” said the bid committee’s president, Moulay Hafid Elalamy in a statement.

    “The World Cup in Morocco would not only be a source of pride but also a great catalyst for development.”

    The only other bid is a joint one from the United States, Mexico and Canada.

    Due to FIFA’s intention to spread the hosting rights for the World Cup more evenly across the globe, European and Asian countries were not allowed to bid for 2026 — this year’s World Cup will be in Russia with the next one in 2022 in Qatar.

    A decision on the 2026 hosts is due to be made on June 13 at the FIFA Congress, the day before the World Cup begins in Russia.

    Should neither candidate be chosen, bidders from Europe and Asia will be invited to submit their proposals.

     

  • Qatar 2022 could be a 48-team FIFA World Cup

    Fifa president Gianni Infantino wants to expand the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 teams, which may mean matches being played in other Gulf states.

    Football’s world governing body voted last January to expand the tournament from 32 teams for 2026, but the South American confederation Conmebol have asked for that to be brought forward.

    BBC Sport understands unofficial talks have taken place with Qatar officials, who remain sceptical given the logistical issues and practicalities of hosting an extra 16 teams.

    Fifa will now conduct their own study to determine if the plan – which would involve Qatar hosting a further 16 matches – is feasible.

    “It seems to me a very interesting idea,” Infantino said after attending a Conmebol meeting in Buenos Aires. “We have to study it seriously and if it is possible, why not?

    “I firmly believe in an enlargement because I am convinced that it is good for the development of football. That is why we have proposed it and that is why we have agreed to it since 2026.”

    Qatar are currently planning to build eight stadiums – four fewer than bidders for the 48-team 2026 edition have been told they will require.

    The finals in four years’ time have been scheduled to run across 28 days in November and December after the tournament was moved from its traditional summer slot because of concerns over heat.

    Analysis

    Fifa has been very keen on this idea for a number of months, with discreet talks taking place with Qatar. Coincidentally, Infantino has been highly active in the region of late – meetings held with leaders in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia for example.

    There have also been reports of informal discussions about any potential expanded tournament involving Kuwait. It begs the question of whether Fifa’s grand plan is to create a larger format tournament – one that Qatar cannot host alone due to its size.

    A regional tournament would be politically difficult given the local tensions and the ongoing blockade Qatar is subject to. But the attraction for Fifa would be to be seen bringing countries together through football.

    Qatar’s regional neighbours would inevitably delight in seeing the country lose the prestige of hosting alone. For those reasons, you can expect Qatar to resist any such move.

  • FIFA ranking: Nigeria move five places up

    Nigeria has moved five places up, now 47th in the world and sixth in Africa with 635 points in the April FIFA/Coca-Cola rankings released on Thursday.

    In the previous rankings, Nigeria was on 52nd position with 609 points.

    Meanwhile, Tunisia is the highest ranked African team on 14th place with Senegal and DR Congo on 28 and 38 positions respectively.

    Germany still retains first place with Brazil following closely while Belgium who was fifth in the March rankings is now third.

    The next rankings will be published on May 17, 2018.

    NAN

  • Former FIFA president Blatter hits out at World Cup bidding process

    Former FIFA president Blatter hits out at World Cup bidding process

    Former world football governing body FIFA chief Sepp Blatter says he is shocked at a rule which has been inserted into the World Cup bidding process.

    The rule referred to by Blatter could allow a five-man task force to disqualify a candidate before a democratic vote is held.

    In 2011 the FIFA Congress, where each of the global soccer body’s 211 member associations hold one vote, was given the right to choose the World Cup hosts following a change proposed by Blatter while he was president.

    The first hosting decision since then will be in June at the Congress in Moscow, where only two bids are in the running, a joint proposal from the United States/Canada/Mexico and one from Morocco.

    However, the two bids must first pass a technical inspection from a five-man task force, which has the power to disqualify a candidate whose proposal is seen as not up to scratch.

    Blatter told Reuters that both candidates should have the right to present their bids to Congress.

    He was banned for six years in 2015 for unethical conduct but has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and believes he can get the suspension reversed.

    The Swiss said he was concerned “that there is a movement” where a “special task force” will be given power “to decide who will be a candidate or not”. He added: “That is not possible.”

    “You cannot deny one of the candidates (the chance) to go to Congress. This is a principle and I stick to this principle… I was shocked.”

    Before 2011, World Cup hosting was decided by FIFA’s executive committee, which had 24 members at the time.

    But the previous bidding process, for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments, became embroiled in allegations of illegitimate attempts to influence the committee’s voting members.

    The finals were awarded to Russia and Qatar respectively at the same time after a vote in December 2010.

    A subsequent FIFA investigation detailed numerous attempts to influence the voting officials but there was no suggestion the race should be re-run.

    Swiss Blatter, FIFA president from 1998 to 2015, was also wary of the new 48-team format to be used at the 2026 World Cup when the tournament will be increased from 32 countries.

    The teams will be divided into 16 groups of three in the first round, with the top two qualifying for the round of 32. One team in each group will not play on a given match day.

    “We will see what will happen with 48 teams but one thing cannot be done – to play in groups of three because we had this problem in 1982 in Spain,” Blatter said.

    In that tournament, the second round had four groups of three teams, with the winners qualifying for the semi-finals.

    The format was never used again during Blatter’s tenure.

    “In groups of three, there is always one spectator (a team who will not be in action),” he added.

    The 82-year-old was also wary of the video assistant referee (VAR) system which was approved by soccer’s rule-making body IFAB in March and will be used at this year’s World Cup.

    “For a purist in football as I am, I think it is an innovation which is going too fast,” said Blatter.

    “Most of the referees have never worked this system and to go the World Cup and to introduce this system in the World Cup, I think it is not very clever.”

    Blatter said that when VAR was first mooted, the idea was to give teams the right to challenge decisions, as in tennis or cricket.

    But under the system approved in March, the referee or the video assistant decides when to review a decision.

    “I don’t feel comfortable, definitely not, and spectators don’t feel comfortable,” he said.

    Blatter remained confident he could overturn his ban, which was imposed by FIFA’s ethics committee shortly after the Swiss attorney general’s office began criminal proceedings against him on suspicion of criminal mismanagement and misappropriation.

    No charges have yet been brought and Blatter has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

    “So if they come to the solution (conclusion) that it is not criminal, then why, why have we been suspended?” he asked.

    “There is a possibility that this suspension will be lifted, although I don’t think it will happen before the World Cup.”

    Reuters

  • Nigerian medical doctor appointed as FIFA Doping Control Officer

    Nigerian medical doctor appointed as FIFA Doping Control Officer

    Dr Ayodeji Olarinoye, former medical doctor in the Nigerian U-17 football team has been appointed Doping Control Officer by the world soccer governing body, FIFA.

    Olarinoye, who graduated from the University of Ilorin, is now the country’s first FIFA doping control officer, the university’s weekly bulletin said on Tuesday.

    According to the publication, Olarinoye is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine and British Association of Sports and Exercise Medicine.

    The publication said the medical doctor would join the network of FIFA medical officers, responsible for ensuring safe and healthy participation in football after attending several anti-doping training.

    The bulletin recalled that Olarinoye was nicknamed NFA (Nigeria Football Association) during his undergraduate years due to his love for football.

    “The 38-year-old Ayodeji is the son of a retired civil servant and former Head of the International Department of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) in the 1990s, Dr Steve Olarinoye.

    “Dr Olarinoye was honoured in 2015 by the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) for his dedication to duty and special interest in the field of Sports Medicine.

    “He is currently running a programme in Sports and Exercise Medicine in Cardiff, U.K., the bulletin said of the doctor who hails from Omupo in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara.

    NAN