Anatomy of a Scandal

IN THE FOUR-PART NETFLIX SERIES FIFA Uncovered, no doubt timed just ahead of the Qatar World Cup, the dramatic growth of the organisation in the mid-1970s is chronicled in some detail and what makes the tale gripping is the narration that links its prosperity to corruption at every stage of its growth. Under João Havelange, FIFA became a truly global body, shedding its Eurocentric clubby ambiance, and transforming into a sport machine that earned millions by way of marketing rights that began with a Coca-Cola sponsorship. There was nothing wrong with that as FIFA needed money not only to organise the game and pay officials but to also support the great game around the world where football was becoming an obsession. The sport offered hope to thousands of youngsters from the favelas of Brazil to the dusty slums of South Africa. Football was a religion that embraced the young and became a lifelong habit. Havelange, a Brazilian businessman, understood that this mania could be tapped for millions of dollars for FIFA—and his—coffers. Not overly burdened by ethical concerns, he also understood the political power he could wield to do business with regimes less than squeaky clean.

Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter’s recent ‘confession’ that awarding World Cup 2022 to Qatar was a mistake left commentators and fans gobsmacked. This was obvious in 2010 itself when a small nation with limited sporting infrastructure and hardly any football tradition was plucked out of the hat. The decision, however, was not a surprise to those familiar with the ways of FIFA. In 1978, Argentina under the harsh dictatorship of a group of army generals, staged the tournament which Havelange pronounced to be a success. Indeed, the emergence of Mario Kempes on the world stage and Argentina’s win against Ruud Krol’s Dutchmen in the final made for riveting football as Latin skills took on the architects of Total Football. Despite the chilly climate, the 1978 World Cup was a huge boost to the game as audiences in Asia and Africa tuned into the action despite the odd timings. Yet, it was also the start of what is today referred to as “sportswashing”—sanitising the controversial aspects of a host nation through a sport extravaganza. Under military dictatorship, hundreds of Argentineans were arrested, subjected to summary trial, extra-judicial executions, and many just disappeared. It is possible to argue that the World Cup provided some joyous moments to a beleaguered nation but that was clearly not Havelange’s objective. He had no qualms about sharing the stage with Jorge Videla, the head of the military junta, presenting the dictator with a major PR coup.

The association of sport with big money is not exclusive to football. It is tempting to draw parallels with cricket and the corruption scandals that have dogged the game. Yet, corruption was institutionalised in FIFA on an unprecedented scale, beginning at the very top. And it did not stop with Havelange as Swiss Sepp Blatter had mastered the same formula by the time he edged his mentor aside in 1998. Like Havelange, Blatter understood that the vote for president hinged on clutches of votes in the Caribbean, Africa and Asia rather than the old-school associations in Europe, some of whom were also swept up by Blatter’s blandishments. It was also a matter of promising associations and administrators handsome handouts to promote the game. In 1998, Blatter promised to take the World Cup to Africa and the on-field action and lilting beats of Shakira’s ‘Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)’ made 2010 a memorable tournament. The deal he had struck with African associations was hardly mentioned. The last World Cup in Russia in 2018 was not without controversies either but the show gave a boost to Russian strongman Vladimir Putin’s popularity.

In the run-up to the Qatar World Cup, there has been a steady stream of negative reports over deaths of workers involved in the construction of sporting facilities, human rights concerns and the Gulf state’s intolerance of same-sex relations, apart from the practicalities of teams playing in the hot weather. Yet, as the World Cup neared, reports said the event would top the $5.4 billion revenues generated by Russia in 2018 with some three million tickets sold. Shrugging off negative reports, the desert nation is set to showcase its modern architecture and facilities intended to awe the world and underline the distance Qatar has travelled from being a land of simple Bedouins. In all fairness, there is a degree of opportunism in the criticism of Qatar’s social and political record. For one, no nation is without some warts and then, such concerns are not raised about businesses and governments striking deals worth billions with Qatar where expats make up 88 per cent of the resident population. The tiny nation is a key Western ally and its relations with India have been marked by a growing proximity the practical benefits of which include significant cooperation in curbing terrorism. Qatar is purchasing the Rafale fighter and has signed a major deal for 50 Airbus passenger planes. Clearly, Qatar’s dollars are kosher and investments in the state are not hindered by any stink from its human rights record. Despite its lack of concern for Western norms relating to human rights and democracy, China hosted the 2008 summer Olympics and the 2022 winter Olympics.

Yet, any queasiness over Qatar’s credentials, even if somewhat selective, does not dilute suspicions that it managed to win the bid for the tournament with some discreet lobbying of key officials and associations. Before they spectacularly fell out, one of Blatter’s closest allies was Qatari building magnate Mohammed bin Hammam. In the Netflix series, he talks about how he enjoyed Blatter’s trust by delivering on everything he promised; this presumably includes lobbying African associations to support the Swiss official’s 1998 election as FIFA president. Hammam had a similar role to play in promoting Qatar’s bid and media investigations have pointed to lavish gifts and private jet-setting to win the vote. If some of the previous host nations have had a troublesome track record with suggestions of underhand deals, the choice of Qatar was certainly more blatant and indefensible. FIFA bosses brazened out the outrage as by now they believed they could do anything they chose to. Their power was at its zenith and even prime ministers, presidents and royalty deferred to them. Political perches could be transient but people like Blatter were around for decades without any scrutiny of their actions. Hammam and
Blatter parted ways amid public rancour with the Qatari stripped of his post as president of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) following a corruption investigation. Hammam now blames Blatter for thwarting his ambition to be FIFA president. What it did do was bring out in the open the lack of transparency and an embedded culture of influence-peddling and personal corruption in FIFA. It was hardly surprising that India’s recent brush with the organisation when its membership was suspended—possibly on the nudge of a former Indian football administrator—was not seen as merely a case of the world body objecting to a delay in the appointment of an elected body to run the game in India.

FIFA’s can of worms burst after a long-running FBI probe into widespread corruption led to a sweeping Department of Justice indictment that “Two generations of soccer officials abused their positions of trust for personal gain, frequently through an alliance with unscrupulous sports marketing executives who shut out competitors and kept highly lucrative contracts for themselves through the systematic payment of bribes and kickbacks.” Among the persons arrested in the high-profile action by FBI in May 2015 were nine FIFA officials and five corporate executives. Though he kept insisting on his innocence, Blatter was removed from the post of FIFA president in October that year. The shock of the indictment, however, would continue to reverberate and bring down key individuals. Among the persons named by FBI was Jack Warner, a Trinidad and Tobago citizen, who was the chief organiser of Caribbean associations and who had used his position to the fullest in FIFA elections. The one-nation, one-vote system meant that the 41-member Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) had solid leverage in FIFA affairs, much more than South American associations, which despite their football traditions and producing World Cup winners in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, added up to only 10 votes. As FIFA Uncovered details, Warner’s key ally was Chuck Blazer who became head of the United States Soccer Federation in 1984. It was Blazer, with a sharp eye for business and personal gain, who pointed out to Warner how the CONCACAF grouping could be monetised. Warner promptly made him general secretary. Interestingly, Blazer became an FBI informant and admitted to accepting and facilitating bribes for World Cup bids. He died in 2017 and Warner faces an extradition request from the US to face the charges against him.

FIFA has struggled to recover from the massive corruption scandal that came to light in 2015 but with Qatar set to present a grand spectacle, football action may dominate the headlines in the coming weeks rather than the antecedents of the nation’s winning bid. The budgets that FIFA and its continental associations deal with make ensuring transparency a difficult task without the commitment and vigilance of officials and national police forces. Qatar may have passed the smell test, even if aided by a fact accompli, but the future of the beautiful game will be more secure if FIFA and its bosses could curb the greed and sleaze that marked the tenures of Havelange and Blatter.

controversyFIFA World Cup: Qatar 2022Mario KempesscandalSepp Blatter