Exclusive:
FIFA official proposes abolishing executive committee in reform plan
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[August 18, 2015]
By Simon Evans
ZURICH (Reuters) - An official overseeing
reform efforts at FIFA has produced a radical blueprint for reform of
soccer's scandal-hit governing body, including the abolition of its
powerful executive committee, according to a person with knowledge of
the plan. Domenico Scala, the independent chairman of FIFA's Audit and
Compliance Committee, proposes replacing the executive committee with a
dual structure. There would be a management committee including
independent professionals charged with ensuring FIFA's day-to-day
running, and a governing council playing more of an oversight role, the
source said.
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The governing council, which would have a lot less power than the
executive committee, would be elected by FIFA's Congress, which
consists of representatives from its 209 member associations around
the world. FIFA is facing unprecedented pressure to reform following
the May indictment by U.S. authorities of nine current and former
soccer officials on bribery-related charges. Many of them had served
on the executive committee or in other FIFA positions.
But the proposed reforms are likely to face huge resistance from
many within FIFA and from six regional soccer confederations, who
currently wield a lot of influence because they nominate members of
the executive committee. The move would remove the direct link
between the continental confederations and FIFA's power structure. A
new Reform Committee, headed by former International Olympic
Committee director general Francois Carrard, could take a different
view, and although Scala is supposed to be overseeing its efforts he
isn't in a position to control it.
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Also the outcome of the February 26 vote to elect a new president to
replace Blatter will likely have an impact on any proposals for
major structural change.
Scala, who is the person charged by FIFA's outgoing President Sepp
Blatter with implementing reforms, presented the plan to the
executive committee at its meeting in Zurich on July 20, the source
added.
TERM LIMITSHis reform plan also includes the introduction of term
limits for all elected officials in FIFA. They would be limited to a
maximum of three four-year-terms and FIFA would also then demand
that national soccer associations and confederations bring in the
same limits - effectively spreading the practice to other levels of
the game's governance, according to the source. Previous proposals
had only included term limits for the president.
Although FIFA does not have the power to force its member
associations to introduce their own term limits, the plan envisages
changing FIFA's rules to ensure that only associations with
term-limits are able to have individuals elected to FIFA's bodies.
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A FIFA spokesperson did not immediately return an email seeking
comment on Scala's plan.
Following the July 20 meeting, FIFA did issue a statement which said
the meeting had heard the plans for term limits and "higher
standards of governance at all levels of football structures
including confederations and member associations, as well as
individual disclosure of compensation."It added: "The members
welcomed the presentation on reforms delivered by Domenico Scala ...
the Executive Committee, supported by the confederations, reiterated
its unity and stated its firm commitment to reform."The executive
committee has already lost some of its previous power as recent
reforms took away its ability to determine who hosts the World Cup
that is held every four years, giving it to the full Congress
instead. The executive committee’s last such decisions – the
granting of the rights to hold the 2018 World Cup to Russia and the
2022 competition to Qatar - are currently the subject of a separate
investigation by the Swiss authorities into alleged corruption in
FIFA.
Swiss businessman Scala was appointed to his position in May 2012.
He has also been made head of FIFA's ad-hoc election committee for
the presidential vote.
FIFA's new 15-member Reform Committee is due to meet in
mid-September and the organization has said that the body will be
"overseen" by Scala's Audit and Compliance Committee and FIFA's
Ethics Committee.
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(Reporting By Simon Evans; Editing by Martin Howell)
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