The beautiful game

Timon Molloy, Editor

“Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I can assure you, it’s much more serious than that.” Bill Shankly, legendary manager of Liverpool FC, might have been speaking half in jest but the recent FIFA (Federation of International Football Associations) farce suggests he was more than half right. Official support for the BBC was muted after Panorama accused three FIFA executive committee members of taking kickbacks for the exclusive marketing rights to the World Cup in a programme aired shortly before the vote on the 2018 hosting bids; the corporation was criticised as “unpatriotic” by Andy Anson, chief executive of the England 2018 campaign. A heavyweight delegation, led by the Prime Minister, no less, with Prince William and David Beckham in close support, flew into Zurich to extol the virtues of the UK’s case to the very individuals who would seem, on the face of it, to have much to answer but who chose to keep silent about claims that they were paid millions of dollars by International Sports and Leisure (ISL); the company’s collapse in 2001 was investigated by the Swiss authorities. FIFA president Sepp Blatter said, “It is important to stress that no FIFA officials were accused of any criminal offence in these proceedings.” True enough but as Panorama revealed, a second investigation by a Swiss magistrate concluded that FIFA executives had received bribes; their names were not released as part of an out of court settlement, which saw them pay back US$3.5 million.