The fundamental problem with FIFA is the revenue body is also the sport’s standards and adjudication body. Split those functions, with one selling tickets and divvying up spoils, while a separate committee polices the sport, and you put aside a lot of the corruption issues unique to FIFA.
What would be better is if they can work together to root out the corruption, but as long as profitability is worshiped as openly as it is, it will tough to fight since money is so concentrated and it's now a kind of self-sustaining entity.
Other confederations are important for FIFA-internal politics (especially the African votes, Infantino's biggest group of supporters), but for fans and players the quality of the clubs matters far more. And that is geographically clustered
On the field, Brazil doesn’t appear to be most important these days.
FIFA has a billions in revenue and reserves. Many of the supranational areas are developing and need that income support, at least it looks like outreach, even if it's bribery-shaped. Even in developed nations the people who make the decisions have long tenures and like paid lunches and free tickets. Tough one to crack.
UEFA is upset about FIFA’s finances because it cuts into UEFA’s finances.
I mean UEFA hasn’t put forward ethically superior plans to finance Futbol development in the poorest parts of Africa, remote Oceania, or tiny Caribean islands.
Indeed, in recent years UEFA has expanded UEFA competitive fixtures to increase revenues via 1. The Nations League, 2. The UEFA Conference League, and 3. The League Phase format of the Champions League and UEFA League.
Each of these is at the expense of countries outside of Europe via reduced opportunities for international friendlies witheuropean clubs, increased club calendars and associated injuries (player injuries have a disproportionate effect on countries with shallower talent pools).
All the UEFA complaints about the expanded world cup (and club world cup) were regarding actions UEFA has pursued in recent years…including the money grab.
If you have to bet, bet its the money not the principle of it.
AFAIK, you can’t actually bring criminal charges as a civilian. You make a complaint to the public prosecutor and they choose to press criminal charges. Some crimes are only prosecuted if somebody complains. And obviously public prosecutors have far more legal power than civilians.
I wonder how sure UEFA is that the prosecutors will prosecute.
> proceeding is within reasonable contemplation for purposes of Swiss law and that Uefa has standing, as a complainant, to file a criminal complaint
It was worth mentioning.
It also matters because that means UEFA can only really ask nicely, and hope they get those documents. A public prosecutor could ask both nicely and with force.
> it’s not the same in all legal systems.
In which popular legal systems can you bring a charge directly without some state intermediary involved?
> It also matters because ... A public prosecutor could ask both nicely and with force. So it doesn't matter since Swiss prosecutor can't use "force" towards a business in New York
It’s a MAGA state.
And MAGA’s business deal, isn’t going to go through.
UEFA has powerful allies in Florida.
Only governments (state, local, federal) can bring about criminal proceedings.
Is the case presented directly to the judge/judge's office? Interesting indeed.
Somewhat interesting, even if you as a victim don’t want it, some crimes are simply mandated to be prosecuted.
I detest Infantino and the grotesque corruption in FIFA, like in IOC and a certain administration. But UEFA Champions League and Nations League are the model Infantino proposed?
Another note is that I see a match of my favorite club every fortnight and have gotten used to the economics of being the 1500th club financially worldwide. (You get either youths or scratched players, and any outstanding player you bring up or find, you will lose for pennies.) Money changed football, but that change was 60 years ago. No manna from heaven is going to change that. So I’ll be gentle: without graft and corruption, and with adequate distribution, more money /could/ even mean better conditions for youth worldwide (/naive dreams).
This money will only go into Infantino and friends’ pockets. Not an ounce of it would ever touch youth programs.
> Off-Topic: Most stories about politics, or crime, or sports, or celebrities, unless they're evidence of some interesting new phenomenon. If they'd cover it on TV news, it's probably off-topic.
You think it is an interesting submission, but it isn't even a particularly relevant step in the ongoing soccer drama.