Sports is no longer just limited to the track or field. With its popularity reaching the zenith, there are multiple departments that function closely, making it a complete package for the viewer. These include marketing, media, hospitality and so on. Now, while earlier there would be fixed companies that would take care of these aspects, now, with the growing number of people in the market, there are several companies that vie for the cake.
This in turn, can lead to many problems, like corruption.
According to latest reports, Swiss authorities have arrested leading FIFA officials meeting in Zurich on corruption charges brought by the United States.
Six football officials were arrested on Wednesday on allegations of paying and receiving millions of dollars in bribes, authorities said.
Arrests were being made overnight in Zurich, where members of the scandal-plagued organization were gathering for an election on Friday that could give its leader Sepp Blatter a fifth term.
Is Blatter Safe?
Sepp Blatter, FIFA president is safe for now. So why have we brought his name up? That’s because even though he isn’t technically among the ones who have been charged, yet, he will feature in the investigations, because administrators close to him have been caught in the snare.
What’s the problem?
It’s stale news that FIFA has always been embroiled in controversies. Here’s how its image has been tarnished.
- The awarding of the 2018 and 2022 bidding process of the World Cup to Russia and Qatar was under the scanner for corruption charges. However, it was closed.
- There have been several questions raised in the past in terms of handing out television and marketing rights.
- In 2011, the FIFA banned for life Mohammed bin Hammam, a Qatari member of its top governing body, for ethics violations.
FIFA Factfile
- FIFA — Fédération Internationale de Football Association — is the international governing association of the sport of football, known as soccer in the United States.
- It is the largest sporting governing body in the world. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, this organization is accountable for management of the major international football tournaments, the most notable being the FIFA World Cup.
- The World Cup, held every four years, is a competition between men’s teams representing various nations. Over 200 associations are members of the organization, making it the world’s second largest international association, with the United Nations being the largest.