FIFA BOSSES ON Tuesday recommended replacing the ethics judge who helped bring down Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini, prompting a response that his removal was “politically motivated”.
A five-hour long meeting of the all-powerful Fifa Council in Bahrain, chaired by president Gianni Infantino, has decided to replace German Hans-Joachim Eckert and ethics investigator Cornel Borbely.
In response, a furious Eckert and Borbely said in a statement that their removals effectively meant the “end of Fifa’s reforms efforts”.
The pair are expected to arrive in Bahrain on Wednesday and due to give a potentially explosive press conference.
The Fifa Council recommended replacing Eckert with Vassilios Skouris of Greece, a former president of the European Court of Justice.
Similarly, ethics investigator Borbely is to be replaced by Colombia’s Maria Claudia Rojas.
The council also recommended Fiti Sunia of America Samoa serve as deputy to Skouris, while Canada’s Bruno de Vita and Martin Ngoga of Rwanda will work alongside Rojas.
The decision is set to be ratified by Fifa at its annual Congress, which convenes in Bahrain on Thursday.
Skouris served as president on the ECJ from 2003 until 2015.
A statement from Fifa said that candidates “will be presented for election en bloc to the Fifa Congress, each for a term of office of four years which would come into effect immediately”.
The decision not to re-elect Eckert and Borbely comes as they have both served their four-year terms.
However, it is likely to raise eyebrows as critics have accused Infantino of having a personal motive to replace Eckert and Borbely, as an ethics investigation was launched against the Fifa president last year.
Eckert was the judge who opened proceedings against Blatter and Platini in November 2015, after Fifa was engulfed by accusations of corruption.
He also opened the case against Jerome Valcke, Blatter’s former powerful deputy, which ended with the once all-powerful French administrator being banned from the game.
Following Tuesday’s meeting, Fifa Council officials left tight-lipped, aside from one insider who said: “Congress members felt that Fifa and the Ethics Commission needed freshening up.”
The same source said that Eckert was blamed for “still being against the publication of Garcia’s report” into corruption at the heart of Fifa.
And some Fifa members, the source added, were astonished that the ethics commission had barely begun “to move on the corruption scandal before the FBI intervened”.
In response, Eckert and Borbely released a no-holds-barred joint statement.
“The impending non-election will set the work of the ethics committee far back and is de facto the end of Fifa’s reform efforts,” it read.
“This will inevitably lead to a renewed loss of trust and further hurt the already tarnished image of Fifa.”
- 2026 World Cup -
Also on Tuesday, the Fifa council ruled out exclusivity for the joint US/Canada/Mexico bid to host the 2026 World Cup.
However, it is believed the bidding process will still be fast-tracked, which hands the advantage to the US-led bid, as much as the infrastructure is already in place.
This decision also needs to be ratified at this week’s Congress.
The Council also decided to recommend lifting the ban on international friendlies being played in Iraq, “provided that the situation remains stable”, said a Fifa communique.
The lifting of the ban clears the way for matches to be played in Erbil, Basra and Karbala.
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I’ve not seen an Irish ten who looks to have such a laconic style of play, such a silky pass. If he has the will to win of Sexton or the mentality of Crowley even Irish rugby is in a great place with two young fly halves for the years to come..
@Andrew Hurley: He also does beautiful spiral kicks. A dying art in rugby. Hopefully he can continue to develop and avoid injury.
Prendergast has something the other 10s in Leinster are missing, and Crowley in Munster does have, a bit of bite. Watching him in the RDS against Connacht, he was very vocal about what he wanted from the rest of the team. At one point when he and Harry Byrne were on the pitch, he told Byrne to… go away… when Byrne wanted to take a conversion. I like that about him. And that’s without taking into account his playing abilities.
We’ve heard similar about Byrne, Frawley and Carbery, so I’ll be cautiously optimistic. Hopefully he can make the step up.
@Sam Bingham: The early career hype can really mess with a player (and many fans too).
@Sam Bingham: Carbery was an absolutely fantastic player before injury derailed him. Also I tend to agree with Luke Fitzgerald that he should have been played at 15. In an alternative universe he could have got the Hugo Kennan gig
The42 can you publish all rugby related articles under rugby section too? Lately there is a mismatch with several articles under latest news and not rugby.
@Con Cussed: They’re trying to make us use the ‘sport’ section more, as most other areas are dead, it works for me but is slightly annoying
Great potential just needs game time to prove correctly or incorrectly Joe Public’s perception of his skills.
Another 42 hype article. Let him show on the pitch what he can do. Until then more temperate language would be appropriate. I am neutral on the guy. He might be the best thing since sliced bread . As of today there is nothing tangible to say one way or another. Let him guy develop without all this noise.
@seamus Beirne: I would have a different opinion. In every match I’ve seen him in from U20s up, he’s been easily the best player on the pitch. He stands out.Crowley had the same impact. We’re in a good place here, not in hype country.
@Mark Russell: hes better than crowley IMO, Jack better get used to the bench
@Mark Russell: a string of constant stand out performances in major matches is what you need to generate hype. Until then ….. it is opinion not fact. There is too much of a tendency to blow up players too early. This Gus has only 5 appearances for Leinster for Christ sake. If he is as brilliant as you say he would be playing much more. You have to respect what the management ticket in Leinster see and do also. If you are good enough, you are old enough.Ntamack debuted for France at age 20.
@seamus Beirne: important senior matches I meant to say
@seamus Beirne: Once again Seamus your anti-Leinster bias and “my province is better than yours” child like mentality comes to the fore. So much so that you’re completely ignorant or just just totally misinformed about actual facts in your haste to be outraged. Prendergast has 16 or 17 apps this season alone for Leinster, not 5 as you state. This is in addition to several appearances last season. At the same age for context, Crowley had 2 brief sub apps off the bench. So Sam P has played a lot more than you’ve incorrectly pointed out and he’s impressed in these games. It’s up to him to deliver on his potential and most level headed people believe that incl me. Were you similarly outraged when Crowley was being overhyped in the 6 Nations after only 8 months as first choice 10 for Munster?
A lot of potential and looks like he is getting the opportunity . Would be interesting to see if he starts a test , really throw him in the deep end and see what happens
Don’t believe this guy has it.. he seems to take too long on the ball and looks an easy target to get smashed.
@DaithLee: does he get smashed? If he does, with or without the ball?? Sexton used to get regularly mullered, regularly late, ball gone, the best out-halves will draw people to them at times and take one for the team.
As long as he knows when to let it go. Variety is the spice of life at 10. Do the same thing every time and defences find it easy