Pound demands action against FIFA

Former International Olympic Committee Vice-President Dick Pound has added to the calls for reform within under-fire governing body FIFA.

FIFA, world football’s Swiss-based governing body, is at the centre of a corruption scandal.

Recent presidential candidate Mohammed Bin Hammam, incumbent Sepp Blatter and Vice-President Jack Warner are all set to appear before a FIFA ethics committee, just days before leadership elections originally scheduled for June 1.

Qatari Bin Hammam, head of FIFA’s Asian Football Confederation, withdrew his candidacy on Sunday.

Pound has now joined the growing list of global figures weighing in with criticism of the tarnished organisation.

“If FIFA is not going to do the game any good, the game may have to do something to FIFA,” Pound told the BBC.

“You could withdraw from FIFA, for example, and say we’re not satisfied that the organisation is not being properly run and it isn’t a credit to the sport we know and love, so let’s have an alternative.”

“There are so many allegations of corruption and foul play and so forth around the activities of FIFA itself and in some of its recent selections for its events, so if there is that much smoke, there may be some fire.”

Canadian lawyer Pound, IOC Vice-President from 1987-1991 and 1996-2000, was an outspoken critic of illegal activities within the Olympic movement.

He played an active role in reforming the structure of the IOC after a bribery scandal surrounding Salt Lake City’s bid for the 2002 Winter Olympics.

“When something like this happened to the IOC, we took it extremely seriously,” Pound said.

“It was a difficult and painful process and when we emerged people understood we had done our best to try to get at the facts and deal firmly with those who had transgressed.”

“The perception of the IOC today is quite different from what it was in 1998 or 1999.”

“Either they (FIFA) have got to find someone internally whose reputation is above reproach who can’t be diverted from doing the right thing or they have to find someone from outside and make sure that person will be provided with all of the necessary information and access to what has gone on.”