With no opponent, Joseph Blatter was confirmed FIFA president even before the elections. From the Home of FIFA in Zurich, Inas Mazhar reports on the bizarre end of a soccer scandal. But has the story really ended? The re-election of Sepp Blatter, the 75-year-old Swiss FIFA supremo, for another four-year term, is a foregone conclusion. Nobody else is running. When Qatar's Mohamed Bin Hammam, Blatter's tough opponent for the presidential seat, pulled out of the race earlier in the week, the 208 members of FIFA had nowhere to go but to Blatter. Still, there was an agenda. The only thing that was left in yesterday's vote was whether the congress would decide to re-elect Blatter by acclamation or conduct a secret ballot. Deadline constraints prevented Al-Ahram Weekly from covering the elections but the mathematics says there can be only one result. Blatter will be re-elected but the question is how damaged he and FIFA have been. Bin Hammam's exit from the scene was the climax of a rough and tumble week for world football's governing body which has been undermined by a series of corruption allegations, the worst in its 107-year history, specifically stemming from last year's World Cup votes, when Russia saw off opposition from England and joint-bids from Netherlands-Belgium and Spain- Portugal for 2018 and Qatar got the 2022 nod over Australia, Japan, South Korea and the United States. At a FIFA congress on Tuesday, allegations of impropriety at FIFA seemed not to overly distress Blatter. While the last six months have been the most turbulent of his reign, he is on course to get the fourth term he said during the campaign would be his last. In 2007, when Blatter was re-elected, interestingly, it was his arch nemesis Bin Hammam who was by his side then and his main supporter. But things have changed and there has been plenty of action since, most noticeably this past week. First, Bin Hammam, Asian football chief, pulled out of the race against Blatter at the weekend, hours before Bin Hammam was provisionally banned from all football-related activities on bribery charges. Executive committee member and FIFA vice- president Jack Warner was also suspended from all football-related activity after the FIFA ethics committee said it would launch a "full inquiry" into the bribery allegations. Warner, who is also president of Concacaf, the governing body for football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, denied any wrongdoing. But the pair are accused of plotting Blatter's removal by paying bribes of $40,000 per recipient to install Bin Hammam as FIFA president. Two regional leaders, responsible between them for almost half the FIFA membership, are nonetheless ejected from the house. On Sunday, an ethics panel exonerated Blatter of any wrongdoing. The committee did not find that the president had a case to answer. Bin Hammam appealed against the decision to suspend him, dismissing the allegation that he had handed over money in exchange for votes. The suspension from any football activity prevented Bin Hammam and Warner from showing up at the congress' opening gala on Tuesday and yesterday's elections. Nobody quite understands why Bin Hammam withdrew which gave way to loads of feverish speculation and guesswork. Bin Hammam did say he withdrew because he did not want to see FIFA's name "dragged more in the mud." Not everyone bought the explanation. Knowing the man, it was clear he was forced to withdraw to save the Qatari bid and it is said that his government had him pulled out. In a statement on his website, Bin Hammam announced his withdrawal from the presidential race, saying that he "was and remains committed to change within FIFA" in order to "further the cause of democracy" within the organisation. "Recent events have left me hurt and disappointed -- on a professional and personal level. It saddens me that standing up for the causes that I believed in has come at a great price -- the degradation of FIFA's reputation. This is not what I had in mind for FIFA and this is unacceptable. "I cannot allow the name that I loved to be dragged more and more in the mud because of competition between two individuals. The game itself and the people who love it around the world must come first." The 62-year-old Bin Hammam also stressed his withdrawal must not "be tied to the investigation held by the FIFA ethics committee", pledging that he would appear before the panel to clear his name. And he did, but failed to clear his name, at least for the time being. The FIFA Ethics Committee, under the chairmanship of Petrus Damaseb of Namibia, decided on Sunday to provisionally suspend, with immediate effect Warner and Bin Hammam from taking part in any football-related activity (administrative, sports or any other) worldwide after examining their cases in relation to alleged violations of the FIFA Code of Ethics linked to the upcoming FIFA presidential elections. The Ethics Committee considered that a provisional suspension was required while the investigation continues, taking into account the gravity of the case and the likelihood that a breach of the FIFA Code of Ethics and the FIFA Disciplinary Code has been committed. Furthermore, the Ethics Committee examined the cases of two officials from the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) -- Debbie Minguell and Jason Sylvester -- also in relation to an alleged breach of the FIFA Code of Ethics and the FIFA Disciplinary Code. The committee also decided to provisionally suspend these two officials from taking part in any football-related activity. But regarding the ethics proceedings opened against Blatter at the request of Bin Hammam for a potential breach of the FIFA Code of Ethics, all charges were dismissed in full, as the Ethics Committee found that no breach of the Code of Ethics had been committed. The Ethics Committee is to meet again to take a final decision on the matter after gathering more information and evidence on the cases. Despite the exoneration, Blatter was probably at least a bit uncomfortable. A FIFA executive meeting during the week was held without six members, four of which were suspended several months ago for alleged World Cup bribes. Two other members face similar allegations. If the executive committee comprises 24 members, this means that a quarter of the board is reportedly corrupt. During the week, there were football matters other than scandal that FIFA had to address. The FIFA Executive Committee, chaired by Blatter, decided to lift the suspensions on the football associations of Bosnia-Herzegovina (FFBH) and Brunei Darussalam (NFABD, formerly BAFA). The committee took these decisions after ascertaining that both national associations had fulfilled the conditions established by the FIFA Emergency Committee and approved statutes in line with the FIFA Statutes. In the case of Indonesia (PSSI), the Executive Committee decided to give a last chance to the PSSI by granting the normalisation committee an extended deadline of 30 June 2011 to organise elections according to the relevant regulations and previous FIFA decisions , in particular that four banned individuals remain ineligible, and to bring the breakaway league back under the control of the PSSI. The Executive Committee decided that, should the conditions not be met by 30 June the PSSI would automatically be suspended on 1 July 2011. The Executive Committee also confirmed that the FIFA Club World Cup 2011 would be held in Japan as scheduled. Furthermore, outgoing Executive Committee member Geoff Thompson was appointed as chairman of the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC) for the remainder of the term until September 2013. Thompson had been appointed to this role ad interim in December 2010. The committee approved the preliminary competition formats and draw procedures for the 2014 FIFA World Cup which had been presented by the six confederations. It also determined that the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking of July 2011 would be used for the continental draws that will take place at the preliminary draw for this competition, with the exception of CONCACAF, which will use the March 2011 rankings, the same rankings used for the first round of the preliminary competition in that region. In addition, the Executive Committee decided to abolish extra time for the FIFA U-17 World Cups and the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cups with immediate effect, after a proposal was made by the Medical Committee and the FIFA Task Force Football 2014. The committee also approved the Gender Verification Regulations in order to have more clearly defined and legally binding regulations on this topic. The regulations will apply with immediate effect. With the mundane out of the way, the next day Monday proved the memorable highlight of the week. In a dramatic solo news conference, Blatter admitted FIFA faced "difficulties" but insisted: "Crisis? What is a crisis? Football is not in a crisis." Usually, the secretary-general and the communications and media director are present at these news conferences. But this time, Blatter appeared by himself. Blatter began by welcoming the findings of an independent inquiry which cleared four members of FIFA's executive committee over allegations made by former Football Association chairman Lord Triesman. "The executive committee of FIFA was very pleased to receive the report of the FA regarding the allegations made by Lord Triesman at the House of Commons," he said. "Football is not in a crisis, only some difficulties which will be solved inside our family," he said. He gave an example of Saturday's Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United. "If you see the final match of the Champions League you must applaud," he said. Blatter refused suggestions from the British government and English FA among others that the presidential election should be suspended. "If governments try to intervene then something is wrong. I think FIFA is strong enough that we can deal with our problems inside FIFA." He explained that it was only the members of the FIFA Congress who have the right to decide whether to postpone the elections. "This cannot be done by the executive committee, it cannot be done by any authorities outside of FIFA -- it's only the congress itself that can do it. The congress will decide if I am a valid or non-valid candidate." Blatter also insisted that the election process and the Qatar World Cup 2022 bid had not been undermined by recent revelations. But he admitted he was sorry that FIFA's reputation has been damaged. "I have tried for years to make FIFA's reputation the highest possible. I regret what has happened in the last few days and weeks, which caused great damage to the FIFA image and a lot of disappointment for football fans. "When I entered FIFA 36 years ago, we had no problems. We had no problems until 1998. This was the so-called 'very modest' FIFA. Now we are a 'comfortable' FIFA. I think we are too comfortable and some people like that. "We are in a game and all the little devils can enter the game. We have to fight against these devils. We have started to fight. "We are in a very bad situation but, starting on Wednesday (yesterday) the football family has the opportunity and they have to take it: if they want to restore the credibility of FIFA, and if they want to restore it with me." In the press conference Blatter tried to sidestep any questions concerning Bin Hammam or Qatar's 2022 World Cup. He said he did not know the reasons for Bin Hammam's withdrawal. But reporters pushed him to speak which made him more nervous. "You should ask Bin Hammam why he pulled out. I was prepared to go into an election process with another candidate and then the congress would have decided. Now the situation has changed." Blatter ended the news conference with an angry exchange with a German reporter, complaining about a lack of "respect" from some members of the media. While Blatter was addressing the media, Warner issued his own statement welcoming the English FA-commissioned inquiry which cleared him. "Today, I regained some hope in the power of truth and transparency. The report of the independent investigator on the allegations of Lord Triesman has proven once again that whenever the truth is told, people will always be able to have their names exonerated," Warner's statement said. Secretary-General Jerome Valcke had a rough day that Monday, having to defend himself following statements made by Bin Hammam and Warner which said that he knew about the bribes issue. Valcke had confirmed that he sent an email to Warner suggesting the 2022 World Cup was "bought" but insisted he was referring to Qatar using its "financial strength" to legitimately lobby for votes. Valcke issued a statement that was published on the FIFA website. "It is fully incorrect -- and quite disappointing -- to say that I have an influence on the FIFA Ethics Committee and its proceedings. I have never attended any of the meetings of this committee, and the first time I have met Deputy Chairman Petrus Damaseb has been shortly before the press conference yesterday evening at the Home of FIFA. I fully respect and highly appreciate the independence of this committee and have no intention whatsoever of influencing their work. As is clearly written in the FIFA Code of Ethics, I have the duty to report to the FIFA Ethics Committee any evidence of violations of conduct reported to me by officials." And on Warner's statement: "Mr Warner has published an email which I sent to him. I'd like to clarify that I may use in an email -- a "lighter" way of expression by nature -- a much less formal tone than in any form of correspondence. Having said that, when I refer to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in that email, what I wanted to say is that the winning bid used their financial strength to lobby for support. They were a candidate with a very important budget and have used it to heavily promote their bid all around the world in a very efficient manner. I have at no time made, or was intending to make, any reference to any purchase of votes or similar unethical behaviour. "I would also like to clarify that, as I said before, no investigation will be open at FIFA regarding the 2022 FIFA World Cup host election." Valcke concluded the statement by saying, "In these challenging times for FIFA, my commitment and dedication for the world governing body is as high as ever. This implies looking for ways to improve the governance of FIFA and provide the organisation with tools and procedures which will help it face the challenges which may come. FIFA is a great association, organising the most popular single-sport event on earth -- the FIFA World Cup, developing football worldwide and using the power of the game for positive social change. That is FIFA." Meanwhile, beleaguered Blatter formally opened the 61st FIFA Congress on Tuesday, warning of the dangers world soccer's governing body was facing. Delegations representing 208 nations attended the opening ceremony, however, only 205 are allowed to take part in the voting. It was an extravagant evening that was followed by a gala dinner. While the show was going on, it was raining heavily in Zurich and continued all night. "I thought the football could make a difference thanks to the game's values of respect, fair play and discipline," Blatter told the congress. "But this does not seem to be the case; the footballing pyramid is shaking on its very foundations. However, football must be protected because it belongs to the fans, to the players and not to entities. The game belongs to everyone." The evening began with a rendition of Franz Lambert's FIFA anthem and a parade of the flags representing the organisation's 208 member associations. Alan Sulc, a 21-year-old juggler from the Czech Republic then took to the stage. Melanie Winiger, a former Miss Switzerland, acted as Master of Ceremonies for the evening. Following Blatter's address, Nicholas Senn then displayed his talents on the hammered dulcimer by playing a varied set of contemporary and classical tunes. The mayor of Zurich, Corine Mauch, then took to the podium to address the congress: "I'm proud that Zurich has been the home of FIFA since 1932, as it makes our city the global capital of football. Zurich is a very international city with lots of nationalities and I think that compliments FIFA. Also FIFA's values in terms of discipline, solidarity and corporate social responsibility are shared with the city of Zurich." The 1,200-strong audience were then entertained by a short ballet performance before the president of the International Olympic Committee Jacques Rogge delivered a speech. "I'm pleased to be here for this gathering of the world's most popular sport, just as I was pleased to attend the excellent World Cup in Africa last year," he said. "The hosts provided tremendous enthusiasm and a great organisation. For a long time now, the World Cup and the Olympics have had a synergy. The IOC and FIFA have learnt to organise events together. The 2014 World Cup will surely help the 2016 Olympic Games. It is imperative that FIFA and the IOC continue to work together. We've already had a great deal of cooperation for the good of sport: the fight against doping, the fight against illegal and irregular betting activities in the definition of the specificity of sport are just a handful of examples." Multi-talented Jamaican-born artist Grace Jones then performed a 20-minute piece, which included La Vie en Rose. Jones is still fondly remembered for her role in the James Bond film A View To A Kill. President of the Swiss Confederation Micheline Calmy-Rey was invited on stage to deliver her address. "What I like about football is the fact that it's a team sport, which relies on individuals. Nothing would be possible without the commitment of each and every member of the team. Football teaches you tolerance. Football is universal. Football is a common denominator worldwide. It unites. Without FIFA it would not be possible for football to be the global game which it is. "I think your slogan: develop football, touch the world, build a better future is spot on. Your initiative, Win in Africa with Africa, helped the whole continent to benefit from the 2010 FIFA World Cup. You helped Palestine to have its own stadium and contributed in bringing harmony between Armenia and Turkey. FIFA is an example to many football fans and therefore it essential that you fight carefully against the troubles you're facing at the moment." The "trouble" has impacted the organisation's commercial partners and sponsors who have shown concern at the allegations of corruption. A Coca-Cola spokesperson said: "The current allegations being raised are distressing and bad for the sport." Visa had this to say: "The current situation is clearly not good for the game. We ask that FIFA take all necessary steps to resolve the concerns that have been raised." "Adidas enjoys a long-term, close and successful partnership with FIFA that we are looking forward to continuing. Adidas will be an official sponsor of FIFA World Cup 2014 in Brazil," an Adidas spokesman said. From the Emirate's airlines: the company was "disappointed with the issues that are currently surrounding the administration of the sport. We hope that these issues will be resolved as soon as possible and the outcome will be in the interest of the game and sport in general." The company's contract with FIFA expires by the end of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Emirates Airline's partnership with FIFA started with the 2006 World Cup in Germany and its contract as an official sponsor runs until the end of the 2014 tournament in Brazil. Back to the rainy, wet evening which might aptly describe the FIFA mood. Jones's rendition of her most famous song, Slave to the Rhythm, indicated that the opening ceremony was drawing to a close. But the same could not be said about FIFA's scandalous saga.
