After the surprising Sepp Blatter resigns from the presidency of Fifa, the highest body in the world of football, the total presidency has already started with many names on the launch pad to take the place of the former master of world football. An armchair that also goes beyond the relevant sporting context, that of football, and also has implications for the delicate geopolitical balance between the world's big names: Obama's USA, which with the FBI investigation determined the ongoing earthquake, Russia of Putin who feels threatened by the investigation for the 2018 World Cup and accuses the Americans of instrumental attack, emerging Asia that would like to count more, Africa that seeks redemption after the South African case, Europe that if Michel Platini took the field could take on a leading role.
Blatter's farewell to Fifa, forced by the FBI investigation which is bringing out a round of corruption that has lasted for almost 20 years, has caused a real earthquake in the internal balance of the Federation. Sepp Blatter, during his last speech from the president, recalled that the next ordinary Fifa congress is scheduled for May 13, 2016 in Mexico. A date that is too distant: an extraordinary elective Congress scheduled between December 2015 and March 2016 will be needed. .
We start with the strong name of European football, the UEFA president Michel Platini that after the Fifa scandal he had clamored for Blatter's resignation. Le Roi Michel was satisfied and is now in pole position in the long race to succeed Blatter. “Our candidate for the future FIFA presidency is Michel Platini, assuming he intends to run,” said FIGC president Carlo Tavecchio, demonstrating full confidence in the former Juventus champion. It remains to be seen whether Platini's figure will prove to be the right one for all the national federations affiliated to UEFA (there are 53).
The middle name is that of the Jordanian prince Ali bin Hussein who had challenged Sepp Blatter in the elections at the end of May. In last week's election Hussein had garnered 60 fewer votes than Blatter. This result then led Hussein to withdraw his candidacy, opening the doors of re-election to the Swiss. Hussein, in case of election, would have suffered a very important problem: the 2022 World Cup awarded to Qatar, a small but very rich state of the Arabian peninsula, which is being investigated by the FBI.
Platini and Hussein are the two strong names on the front of the next election. Behind them there are many outsiders ready to advance over the next few months by gathering the support of over 200 football federations affiliated to FIFA.
It starts with Luis Figo, Portuguese champion of the late 90s and early XNUMXs, formerly of Barcelona, Real and Inter. The Portuguese had withdrawn his candidacy for the May elections a few days before the Zurich congress. He suggestive the hypothesis relating to George Weah. The former AC Milan striker of the second half of the 90s, at the end of his football career, actively engaged in politics by running for president in 2005 in Liberia where he was then defeated in the runoff by Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. Weah's candidacy could give a new face to Africa tainted by the possible round of bribes over the allocation of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The same role also for a woman who comes from Africa, Lydia Nsekera, former IOC member, president of the Burundi Football Federation from 2004 to 2013 and the first woman to be elected to the FIFA executive committee.
And then here are two other names that could attract attention, one that comes directly from the world of football, the other that football, and Fifa in particular, has funded it abundantly in recent years. The first is the former Brazilian champion Zico. Among the greatest players of all time, "champion of everything" at the beginning of the 80s with his historic team, Flamengo, Zico also had a happy parenthesis in Italy playing for Udinese for two years. The Brazilian champion was one of the greatest performers in the conversion of free kicks.
In fact, many remember how during the radio broadcast 'Tutto il calcio minuti per minuti' during the Serie A matches, the radio commentator on duty in the Udinese matches asked for the line every time Zico took charge of taking a free-kick: practically a judgment. The second suggestive candidacy is, however, that of Mr. Hyundai, Chung Mong Joon. The number one of the South Korean automotive giant, sponsor of Fifa for several years, said he will "carefully evaluate" the possibility of applying, in collaboration with the Europeans.
