There is something very special about scoring a goal. And most of us have experienced it at one time or another.
It’s magic.
The magic of football will never change, so let’s keep this FIFA thing in perspective.
The game of football is not in crisis. It’s the upper management of the game that’s in crisis.
The recent revelation that something’s up with FIFA is regrettable and is of concern to the global soccer community, including Canada and the Canadian Soccer League.
. The Canadian Soccer League regrets that a dark shadow has been cast over the game, and it is going to take some time to move it. It’s been said many times that the world game is so considerable in scope – it’s the national sport in more than 200 countries — that everything that happens in the world, also happens in soccer.
But it is still the beautiful game.
The CSL urges its clubs, players, match officials and fans to dismiss reports of soccer now being ‘The ugly game’ – as described and characterized by various media throughout the world, including its use as the title of a book written by two Sunday Times reporters.
It’s a credit to the game that FIFA has become so wealthy. FIFA’s properties, including the World Cup, are so marketable on a global scale the revenues produced are astronomical.
Trusting the management of these increasing revenues has failed. FIFA has become so giddy with so much income pouring in to its coffers that honesty and judgement with outgoing revenues have failed.
Bribery, corruption and money laundering are not the only issues that are of concern. Certain legitimate payments also need to be questioned. For example, FIFA is reported to have paid $5 million to the Republic of Ireland as a consolation for the referee failing to call the hand ball by Thierry Henry in extra time of a key game in the 2009 World Cup. The French captain then scored to eliminate Ireland. There have been other payments of questionable judgement.
The obvious corruption in FIFA circles, which has been the subject of discussion for some years now, has exploded into one of the biggest sporting scandals of our time. The awarding of the 2022 World Cup to Qatar, which is oil rich but would hardly qualify as a serious candidate to host the World Cup given its
lack of any meaningful soccer history, its unsatisfactory searing hot climate during local times when the World Cup games should be played, and its weak infrastructure for soccer. While some of these shortcomings can be fixed, there are still many countries more deserved of the plum award – the hosting of the world’s grandest tournament. Why on earth was the World Cup awarded to Qatar ?
The Canadian Soccer League rejects the position taken by many that the game itself is in trouble. The CSL will continue to focus on the field of play, the kind of football that in recent years has help to develop no less than 42 players for international duty, mostly at the youth level. There has also been a procession of players move from the CSL to higher level overseas clubs.
Over the years, at any one time about 100 players Canadians have been playing at a high level outside of this country, mostly in Europe, and the CSL has contributed to that number. In the other direction, there has been an influx into the CSL of players from Europe. Many of these players are in the twilight of their careers, but have skills that help to make the CSL the attractive and competitive league it is.
The Canadian Soccer Association is a member of CONCACAF, the confederation of countries in North America, Central America and the Caribbean. Officials from CONCACAF have been named as suspects of accepting bribes, kickbacks, totalling more than $150 million. CONCACAF president Jeffrey Webb has been removed from office after being arrested at Zurich on arrival for the FIFA congress, while CONCACAF general secretary Enrique Sanz has been suspended after being named as a suspect in the anti-corruption sweep carried out by U.S. authorities.
Former CONCACAF president Jack Warner is of higher profile and may be in deeper trouble. In the midst of the FIFA scandal, as recent documents reveal, the transfer of monies went into bank accounts which he controlled.
Many of the FIFA hierarchy named as suspects are from the world’s football’s federations. But where have the national associations been while this has been going on for such a long time?
It’s been the world media that has been sounding alarm bells. Why not the national associations ?
The CSL urges the Canadian Soccer Association to be a force for fairness, honesty and integrity within FIFA and particularly express its concern or objection of any decision or transaction that may be illegal.
CSA president Victor Montagliani, a native of Burnaby, B.C., was elected president of the Canadian Soccer Association in 2012 and was appointed to FIFA’s legal committee the same year, a committee that analyses basic legal issues. Canada, therefore, has been and is still in a good strategic position to observe what’s been going on.
For most of us, it’s going to be who is telling the truth and who will continue to be the purveyors of deceit? And most of all, we need to know how can so many trusted guardians of world football use the game so extensively for their own gain for so long?