To my American colleagues who went to the seminar on ‘sports integrity’ at the National Press Club on June 24th, You saw a presentation by a man with little credibility in sports integrity and two other men who have failed. You attended a presentation sponsored by the Qatari sports establishment. This is a group that is suspected by sports fans around the world of corruption in securing the rights to the World Cup tournament of 2022. This is a group that...
What to do if you're a Canadian soccer fan. It is very simple. Cheer the players: Boo the soccer officials. Anytime a FIFA official walks on the pitch or addresses the crowd: boo and jeer them. For good measure, make signs that denounce them. At these international events, FIFA officials’ usual trick is to make sure they are only seen on the pitches accompanied by fashion models or small children in costumes. Ignore the models, respect the children, but jeer the FIFA officials. Remember, this...
Finally. Finally. Finally. This must be the end to Sepp Blatter. This must be the end to the reign of corruption at FIFA. Never has the sports world seen such a spectacle. Officials being carted off for arrest as they arrive for an international conference. Can FIFA ever regain its credibility? A couple of thoughts. 1) Full kudos to Jens Weinreich and Andrew Jennings. They have been saying this for years. They said it and wrote about it when few would listen. 2) Why did it...
