Monday, March 8, 2010

Blatter and his Fifa colleagues are not fit to run football

This article will be short and unfortunately not so sweet as I only have one point to make, and I plan to make it as abruptly as possible.

Sepp Blatter and his cronies at the top of football's international heirarchy are no longer fit to represent the game and are damaging the credibility, integrity and long-term future of world football. For too long they have stood in the way of the reasonable evolution of the game and by dismissing the possiblity of any form of technology being used to assist referees in the future, they have once again shown us they are not fit to govern.

As Patrick Barclay points out in his ever-eloquent column in The Times, the level of debate on the matter appears to have been "staggeringly low". So low in fact, that there can be little doubt they were ever seriously considering the options.

The argument of football purists about the ebb and flow of the game, and the potential problems an appeals system could introduce could be overcome by limiting the use of any technology to an assistant with a monitor. With no influence from either team, and a simple responsiblity to inform the referee discreetly and promptly of any mis-directed officiating, the introduction of video refereeing could be an almost invisible addition and enhancement to the game. No fanfare required, no major overhaul of the way we play the game, just one guy with a montior and a radio-linkup to the man in the middle.

Personally I lost faith with the world governing body and it's suitability to run the game a long time ago - just about the time Sepp Blatter came to power in fact. Nothing has happened since to make me change my mind, and in fact my opinion of Fifa has only deteriorated over time. If there is someone within the ranks who can make a difference, they need to start making a stand now, before it really is too late. I genuinely fear for the future of this most beloved of sports while it is in the hands of Blatter and co., and I only hope that they aren't allowed to sabotage our game for much longer.

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