Re: World Soccer XXVI: Fun for MLS Fans and Eurosnobs Alike
Prince Ali has withdrawn [after the first round of voting ended and before the second round began]. Blatter wins. Let the fun begin...
Frankly, I was surprised that Blatter did not get the 2/3 majority he needed in the first round. That was a major victory for Ali and the reformers right there.
Probably got blackmailed at the last minute.
Perhaps, my surmise is more that he is playing a long-term calculated strategy in conjunction with Gulati and similar like-minded and more discreet others. Blatter has proclaimed (a) his own innocence, and (b) that he was "shocked, shocked," to find out about the corruption and promised to do better next time. Either (a) will be contradicted in the course of time, or it won't, or (b) now Gulati, Ali, and others can keep the focus on Blatter's promises and try to force him to follow through.
Meanwhile, in the background, there is a
separate investigation underway by Swiss authorities regarding how the Qatar bid was awarded. Who knows what might shake out of that?
For example, many of the people who voted for Ali in the first round might not have voted for him in the second round, and that would put the long-term cause back. He took his shot and did far far better than anyone would have expected just two weeks ago, and that is huge progress. Incremental steps, and keep the pressure on. It sounds like there are now three governments investigating FIFA to find out whether bribery and kickbacks transpired inside their borders or using their financial systems.
