The Fifa Ethics Committee: An Oxymoron?
“FIFA stands for discipline, respect, fair-play, not just on the field of play, but in our society as well”
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Despite such rhetoric being consistently uttered by Sepp Blatter, the controversial president of Fifa,
the governing body of the world’s most popular sport continues to be dogged by allegations of
dishonesty and fraud.
In the last year alone, we have witnessed the controversy over Fifa’s revised plans to move the 2022
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World Cup to the winter due to the searing temperatures in Qatar during the summer months. This
was followed by the legitimate outcry over Qatar's human rights record and the conditions imposed on
migrant workers who are being engaged in the building of the infrastructure and stadia for the
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tournament. Then, in the weeks leading up to 2014 World Cup, the Sunday Times released the ‘Fifa
Files’; millions of emails and other supporting documents that were obtained from a Fifa whistle4
blower. These documents, it was claimed, would prove beyond doubt that Qatar’s successful bid for
the 2022 World Cup was founded upon bribes, bungs and corruption.
And just a day before the start of Fifa’s showpiece tournament in Brazil, Lord Triesman the former
Football Association (“FA”) chairman, accused Fifa of behaving “like a mafia family” and suffering from
“systematic corruption” which is underpinned by “non-existent investigations where most of the
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accused are exempt from the investigation make it impossible to proceed”. It appears that Lord
Triesman’s view is now no longer an opinion held by the minority; but what are the reasons for this
fundamental failure in governance and what can Fifa do to repair its toxic image?
The Fifa ethics governance structure
To better understand why the reputation of Fifa has reached rock bottom, let’s look back at the events
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that led to the formation of the Fifa Ethics Committee (FEC) and the review of the Code of Ethics
(“Code”) that underpins it.
In 2011, in the wake of the original claims by the Sunday Times of corruption by members of the Fifa
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Executive Committee (ExCo) in the voting for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, Blatter commissioned
the Independent Governance Committee (IGC) to examine Fifa’s existing governance structures and
to propose recommendations. The IGC was, it was said, part of Fifa’s ‘road map’ for reforming the
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organisation in the wake of the avalanche of corruption allegations.
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The IGC’s inaugural report in 2012 led to a fortification of certain provisions of the Code including
those related to conflicts of interest, gifts, bribery and corruption. At the same time, the FEC was
established. The FEC was made up of two independent chambers: an Investigatory and an
Adjudicatory chamber.
Michael Garcia, a former US attorney and the man responsible for conducting the latest investigation
into allegations of Fifa corruption, is currently in the post of Independent Chairman of the Investigatory
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March 2013, interview with Sepp Blatter by Philippe Auclair in The Blizzard, Issue 8
http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/may/16/sepp-blatter-qatar-2022-world-cup-mistake
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/fifa-deserves-a-red-card-for-not-doing-more-on-human-rights-inqatar/2014/06/12/f4b6c662-f1a9-11e3-9ebc-2ee6f81ed217_story.html
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http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk_news/fifa/article1417325.ece
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-27801996
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http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/bodies/standingcommittees/committee=1882034.html
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http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/footballgovernance/codeethics.html
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http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk_news/fifa/article626236.ece
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http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/apr/23/fifa-advised-implement-report-advice-reform
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http://www.baselgovernance.org/.../FIFA/first_report_by_igc_to_fifa_exco.pdf
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Chamber of the FEC. Once his report is finalised, he will pass it to the Adjudicatory Chamber which
will consider whether any disciplinary measures are appropriate.
The question of independence
The FEC was hailed by Fifa as independent by virtue of the fact that both chambers would be led by
an autonomous chairman and vice-chairman. In examining the issue of independence, time is better
spent exploring the FEC’s powers of sanction as opposed to casting any aspersions over the
objectivity or professional integrity of any individuals involved. In other words, is Lord Triesman
correct when he claims that “most of the accused are exempt from the investigation”?
In this respect, the Code is unambiguous. Amongst other punishments, individuals can be (and have
been) banned from taking part in any football related activity, and the FEC can also recommend that
the case is passed to criminal authorities. It is therefore clear that there is a broad range of
disciplinary sanctions available to the Adjudicatory Chamber against any infringing individuals.
Nevertheless, the Code is less clear about what would happen in the event of the type of wholesale
corruption alleged by the Sunday Times. For example, can the Adjudicatory Chamber order a re-vote
for the 2022 World Cup if the allegations are proven? Regrettably, this type of scenario has not been
contemplated by the Code and all it appears that the FEC can do is make a recommendation to the
Fifa president or the ExCo that the bidding procedure should be repeated.
This therefore somewhat undermines the independence of the whole process. I am not convinced that
anyone would deny that running the whole bidding process again would be the correct and ethical
thing to do should the Sunday Times allegations be substantiated. However, there appears to be little
potential for the existing Fifa president or the members of the ExCo to sanction a re-vote; after all
such a decision has the potential to have severe consequences on those very same individuals.
Resistance to change
With the establishment of the FEC it is evident that Fifa has taken some small steps to putting its
house in order. It is also realistic to expect that governance issues will arise within, what is now, a
multinational conglomerate formed more than a century ago which consists of 209 football bodies
from around the world.
However, I do not prescribe to the commonly held (but, in my opinion, lazy and xenophobic) belief that
the corruption of the type that has been levelled at Fifa is a cultural problem; an issue caused by the
contrasting views of its members about transparency and public accountability; because superior
western ideals are somehow not applicable to other societies.
To counter that particular theory, all one has to do is recall a friendly match against Thailand hastily
arranged by the English FA in 2010. This match was due to be worth millions to the Thailand FA and
it is widely understood that it was arranged in order to secure the vote of the ExCo member for
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Thailand, Worawi Makudi, for England’s 2018 World Cup bid. Needless to say, this was in direct
contravention of the bidding rules, which state “the member association agrees to refrain from
collaborating or colluding with any other member association or any third party with a view to unfairly
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influencing the outcome of the bidding process”. The match never took place as, within days of
Makudi defaulting on his pledge to vote for England’s bid, it was cancelled. The Chairman of the FA at
the time: a certain Lord Triesman. What happened to those superior western ideals?
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What is clear, however, is that despite recognition that "these are important times for Fifa", there has
been a great deal of resistance by Fifa to any meaningful change. This is perhaps not surprising
considering the self-interests involved.
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/england/8180374/World-Cup-2018-England-to-pull-out-of-Thailandfriendly-in-protest-after-humiliating-bid-defeat.html
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http://es.fifa.com/mm/document/affederation/.../01/12/.../rulesofconduct.pdf
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http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/06/11/uk-soccer-fifa-congress-idINKBN0EM1I420140611
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There were widespread media reports earlier this year that Garcia almost fell victim to a plot by some
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Fifa executives to remove him from the FEC. While it is not within the ExCo’s power to interfere with
the supposedly independent FEC (having been sanctioned by the full Fifa congress), if true this
certainly indicates a level of arrogance (and anxiety) exhibited by members of ExCo who seemingly
have no regard to the independence of the FEC.
At a time when Fifa should be looking to modernise and reform, it was also entirely unhelpful for
Blatter to claim that the allegations (originating from a British paper) surrounding the Qatar 2022
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World Cup bid were motivated by “a great deal of discrimination and racism" thus evoking memories
of Britain’s colonial past at the same time as attempting to claim that the commendable investigatory
journalists somehow have an agenda against Fifa.
The Olympic Example
There are many parallels to be drawn between the current Fifa storm and the scandal that engulfed
the International Olympic Committee (“IOC”) regarding the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City. In
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1998, it emerged that members had taken bribes to vote in favour of Salt Lake City. Governments
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from around the World, including Britain’s, declared that the IOC was not fit for purpose. The
controversy led to an overhaul of the IOC system and sanctions were handed out for the first time (ten
members were expelled and ten sanctioned for accepting gifts).
However, just as importantly, Juan Antonio Samaranch (the president of the IOC between 1980 and
2001) recognised that the corruption was the symptom of a much more deep-rooted problem. As a
result, Samaranch remodelled the IOC and retired from his position, with Jacques Rogge taking over
as the governing body’s president. Rogge would later remark: “We were not in denial. Samaranch
understood it was not enough just to take care of the corruption but he had the vision to see that we
had to review the whole functioning of the IOC. Samaranch understood that we had to move from a
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sports club to an international organisation.”
At the Fifa annual congress, just one day before the 2014 World Cup kicked off, Blatter stated, with no
hint of irony, that: "The answer is easy and simple … we must lead by example and we must listen to
all voices, we must be responsible and upright in all that we do, we must do the right thing even if that
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comes at a cost".
If Fifa is not prepared to be introspective for the good of football, a sport which undoubtedly has the
ability to change lives for the better, then it will surely have to take notice of Fifa’s partners. These
sponsors have been unusually vocal in expressing their concern at the allegations surrounding the
2022 bidding process. Considering that each partner pays Fifa between $24 and $44 million annually
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for the right to be associated with Fifa and the World Cup, hitting Fifa in the pocket may be the best
way to instigate significant reform.
Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, 78-year-old Blatter recently confirmed that he intends to seek a fifth
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term as Fifa president when his current tenure expires in 2015. This despite vocal opposition from a
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number of influential football figures, including the UEFA head Michel Platini.
It is not difficult comprehend why many now regard the designation ‘the Fifa Ethics Committee’ as an
oxymoron; the same Teflon sports officials that have been implicated in many of the scandals
continue to cling onto their positions and to make the decisions that shape Fifa’s governance structure
and disciplinary process. Blatter’s cause appears to have been helped by Fifa’s decision not to
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http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/mar/25/fifa-ethics-investigator-michael-garcia-survives-plot-overthrowhim
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http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/jun/09/sepp-blatter-storm-fifa-qatar
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http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2002-winter-olympic-bid-scandal
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http://www.theguardian.com/sport/1999/feb/03/tony-banks-criticises-ioc-conference-doping-sport
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http://www.insidethegames.biz/blogs/13285
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http://uk.mobile.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idUKKBN0EM1SG20140611
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http://www.sponsorship.com/About-IEG/Press-Room/FIFA-Secures-$1-6-Billion-in-World-Cup-Sponsorship.aspx
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/27805019
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/27810126
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impose an age limit or a maximum term for officials; in a purely corporate World this would surely not
be allowed to subsist. Until antiquated rules such as these are revised and there is a reorganisation
right at the summit of the organisation it is difficult to see how any real reform from within can be
achieved by Fifa.
Zane Shihab, June 2014.
About the author
Zane is a Sports Lawyer and Associate Partner who provides practical commercial advice to global
brands, international sporting bodies and events and high-profile individuals. He specialises in drafting
commercial contracts and has negotiated numerous lucrative sponsorship and supplier agreements
on behalf of sporting governing bodies (including the PGA European Tour, Ryder Cup, and London
Marathon). Zane is credited in the Legal 500, 2013, as being ‘quick, and fantastic at drafting’, is a
regular author of legal articles and is frequently asked by television broadcasters to provide his
opinion on current sports law issues.
Twitter: @ZDShihab
LinkedIn: uk.linkedin.com/in/zaneshihab/
Company website: http://www.kermanco.com/
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