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Blazer says politics played role in World Cup vote
AP
Saturday, December 04, 2010
NEW YORK, New York (AP) — The American member of FIFA's executive committee says politics played a part in the selection of Russia and Qatar to host the World Cup and that football's governing body must reconsider how it decides future tournament sites.
Chuck Blazer said that because FIFA is unlikely to choose the 2026 host for eight years, it should consider changes well before it's time to vote again.
A supporter of the failed US bid for 2022, Blazer said he thinks the North and Central American and Caribbean Confederation (CONCACAF) was the biggest loser in the decision to end FIFA's policy of rotating World Cup hosts among the continents.
"The shame of all of it is under the rotation system, clearly '18 would have been ours, and we gave way to lifting that system in order to provide Europe with a good opportunity and FIFA to have another European World Cup in between," he said yesterday from Zurich in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.
FIFA adopted a continental rotation system in August 2000, three weeks after Germany defeated South Africa 12-11 in the vote for 2006 World Cup host. It was scrapped in October 2007 over CONCACAF's objection, a day before Brazil was unanimously elected the 2014 host -- it was the only bidder.
CONCACAF has not hosted a World Cup since the 1994 tournament in the United States.
"I've got to think in the end that having moved away from what had been agreed to as the rotation, that we ended up with the short end of that stick as a confederation," said Blazer, the number two official in CONCACAF behind president Austin 'Jack' Warner.
With eight of the 24 executive committee votes, Europe wound up as the only continent competing for 2018 as others did the math months in advance and withdrew. Russia won Thursday's balloting over England, Spain-Portugal and Netherlands-Belgium.
England received just two votes and was knocked out in the first round.
"I think they had a great bid. They certainly have great facilities. But for me, going into the day, it was clear to me they didn't have the votes to win," Blazer said.
Qatar won 2022, beating the United States 14-8 in the final round after Australia, Japan and South Korea were eliminated.
Blazer, while saying Qatar won the vote fairly, said he thinks jockeying for support to succeed the 74-year-old Blatter, who replaced Joao Havelange as president in 1998, was a factor. Blatter is running for a fourth term and has said he is braced for a candidate from Asia to challenge him in the vote at the FIFA Congress, May 31-June 1.
Qatar's Mohamed Bin Hammam is president of the Asian Football Confederation, which would have nearly half the votes needed to elect a president if it votes as a bloc.
"I don't think these are decisions anymore made purely on what's the best place to host it or who's best capable of doing the best job," Blazer said. "If you consider that there are potential candidates that are looking to align support, Asia is certainly a major piece of the puzzle as we are going forward."
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sport...#ixzz1790ctN63
AP
Saturday, December 04, 2010
NEW YORK, New York (AP) — The American member of FIFA's executive committee says politics played a part in the selection of Russia and Qatar to host the World Cup and that football's governing body must reconsider how it decides future tournament sites.
Chuck Blazer said that because FIFA is unlikely to choose the 2026 host for eight years, it should consider changes well before it's time to vote again.
A supporter of the failed US bid for 2022, Blazer said he thinks the North and Central American and Caribbean Confederation (CONCACAF) was the biggest loser in the decision to end FIFA's policy of rotating World Cup hosts among the continents.
"The shame of all of it is under the rotation system, clearly '18 would have been ours, and we gave way to lifting that system in order to provide Europe with a good opportunity and FIFA to have another European World Cup in between," he said yesterday from Zurich in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.
FIFA adopted a continental rotation system in August 2000, three weeks after Germany defeated South Africa 12-11 in the vote for 2006 World Cup host. It was scrapped in October 2007 over CONCACAF's objection, a day before Brazil was unanimously elected the 2014 host -- it was the only bidder.
CONCACAF has not hosted a World Cup since the 1994 tournament in the United States.
"I've got to think in the end that having moved away from what had been agreed to as the rotation, that we ended up with the short end of that stick as a confederation," said Blazer, the number two official in CONCACAF behind president Austin 'Jack' Warner.
With eight of the 24 executive committee votes, Europe wound up as the only continent competing for 2018 as others did the math months in advance and withdrew. Russia won Thursday's balloting over England, Spain-Portugal and Netherlands-Belgium.
England received just two votes and was knocked out in the first round.
"I think they had a great bid. They certainly have great facilities. But for me, going into the day, it was clear to me they didn't have the votes to win," Blazer said.
Qatar won 2022, beating the United States 14-8 in the final round after Australia, Japan and South Korea were eliminated.
Blazer, while saying Qatar won the vote fairly, said he thinks jockeying for support to succeed the 74-year-old Blatter, who replaced Joao Havelange as president in 1998, was a factor. Blatter is running for a fourth term and has said he is braced for a candidate from Asia to challenge him in the vote at the FIFA Congress, May 31-June 1.
Qatar's Mohamed Bin Hammam is president of the Asian Football Confederation, which would have nearly half the votes needed to elect a president if it votes as a bloc.
"I don't think these are decisions anymore made purely on what's the best place to host it or who's best capable of doing the best job," Blazer said. "If you consider that there are potential candidates that are looking to align support, Asia is certainly a major piece of the puzzle as we are going forward."
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sport...#ixzz1790ctN63
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