You’re an old white man, stubbornly clinging to power. You are forced to hold an election. You were able to control the candidates that are allowed to run against you, so that only the most neutered opposing candidates are standing against you. You should feel confident about this election. But still, you lay awake at night, thinking how you can hold onto that semblance of power for one more term, to cement the “legacy” you have been pursuing with a zeal of a man who is facing the abyss of death, and is grasping for a foothold of relevance. What does he do to ensure himself he can sleep soundly?
By making it rain! Sepp kicks off his re-election campaign for the fourth time by handing out a billion dollars to the member associations. Sepp’s ‘rival’ – Bin Hammam – is offering to double the money handed out to the members, and Sepp just decided to kick it up even more. Why not? FIFA is swimming in money, they are sitting on cash reserves of $1.2b, a position many corporations would envy.
Of course, always being a spin-master, Blatter is pushing the mantra of “stability, continuity and reliability.” Vote against Sepp at your peril! Look at all the money he’s given you over the years – how could you even think of voting against him! The world economy is in the tank, the markets are in flux, and yet, we are making money. Add to this, his statements on making FIFA more “Transparent” that I honestly think when he gives these speeches in private, they stop and bust up laughing.
Does Bin Hamman have a chance? He does, because he’s running. But he’s a joke and the fact that Sepp is pegging him as someone to make “rash decisions.” He’s the other side of the same coin. One of his suggestions is to increase the size of the member body to cut down on power. How about if you really focus on transparency? Maybe hold some more open competitions and keep things on the table. The World Cup bids were gamed by the leader (Sepp) strong arming the smaller associations, and if they increase the size, you’ll end up with voting blocks (much like a parliament) where votes will be horse traded regularly. As we saw with the Grant Wahl candidacy, you have to be a member of the Rich Man’s Club ™ in order to get a seat at the table, and FIFA is no different.
Meanwhile, UEFA’s Michael Platini and lapdog to the Sepp-ster has been mum on this topic claiming he will make a formal statement in May. It’s all for show, or better yet, it’s all about making sure all the right palms can be greased between now and then. I’ve only found where the Costa Rica soccer federation has backed Sepp.
I’ll wrap this up with one of the great quotes from his letter. He “promises” he will step down in 2015 if elected again.
“I have all the motivation, experience, ideas and energy needed to complete my mission”
The little man continutes to spend his nights trying to add importance to his reality.
There were six other Central American countries that Sepp says support him.