Several FIFA Exec Committee members "are working behind the scenes to convince the organization to release a confidential investigative report on the bidding process" for the '18 and '22 World Cups, according to Futterman & Robinson of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Sources said that these members "have been lobbying colleagues to release the 350-page report amid mounting calls for FIFA to be more transparent." FIFA's code of ethics "requires that investigations be kept confidential." FIFA "hired former U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia in 2012 to investigate the bid process, which generated much controversy after Russia and Qatar won the voting to host the next two World Cups." Sources said that Garcia "strongly believes FIFA should authorize the public release of the report subject to minor redactions in cases where the identities of witnesses who provided information on the investigation need to be protected" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 9/24). U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati today said that he "plans to raise the issue" during tomrrow's Exec Committee meeting in Zurich and added that he will "aggressively lobby for the report to be made public." Gulati said, "If we’re going to truly support the idea of transparency and change within FIFA, it has to be made public in the truest meaning of the word.” In N.Y., Sam Borden reports "at this point, it is believed that only four people have seen" the report, including Garcia and his deputy, as well as FIFA's independent Ethics Committee Adjudicatory Chamber Chair Hans-Joachim Eckert and his deputy. Gulati "would not provide a list of other members who have expressed their support for making the report public but like-minded members are believed to include" CONCACAF President Jeff Webb and FIFA VPs Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein (Jordan) and Jim Boyce (Northern Ireland) (NYTIMES.com, 9/24).
HEAD CASE: In N.Y., Sam Borden reports FIFA "is expected to confirm a new policy this week that will allow referees to stop games for up to three minutes so that an injured player can be examined by a team doctor." The new guideline "will be instituted" after the FIFA Exec Committee "affirms it with a vote during its two-day meeting this week in Zurich." UEFA "adopted the protocol last week," and it "will be used for the first time in the Champions League next week." FIFA in announcing its new policy referred to events involving head injuries at the '14 World Cup as an "impetus for its changes." Some people "may find such a link bizarre -- head injuries in sports are hardly a new issue -- yet this adjustment is at least a small step in the direction of safety" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/24).
