Who is Sepp Blatter?

"I would say they [gay fans] should refrain from any sexual activities."

Mr Sepp Blatter, President of FIFA, has made comments of late which have not gone down well in the international press. When asked about the illegal status of homosexuality in Qatar and if it would affect the World Cup that will be held there in 2022 he cracked a joke (quoted above), before going on in a more serious tone to say "I'm sure when the World Cup will be in Qatar there will be no problems".

Hmmm...

Frankly, many people are getting hot and bothered (and even angry) about how Mr Blatter has acted of late: FIFA's decision to host the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the 2022 edition in Qatar have been heavily criticised and whispers of corruption in the organisation are turning into outright howls.

Perhaps the behaviour of Mr Blatter (and his comments, which in the best light can only be described as "those of a maverick") should be expected by now:

• his laughs at the Irish Football Association requests after the "Hand of Henry" were close to those of a school-yard bully; 
• his lack of action regarding video technology in high competition football (just think of Frank Lampard's goal that wasn't in the World Cup Finals, the "Hand of Henry" incident, and the the recent introduction of the technology to tennis, cricket, horse racing, snooker, and other sports) IMHO is nothing short of shocking; and 
• his control over the selection of Russia and Qatar as future World Cup hosts is beginning to come under intense scrutiny.

So who is he? Here is an official and (slightly) unofficial line from FIFA and Wikipedia respectively. Click on the links below to follow them (they may have been updated since I posted this):

FIFA Page

Wikipedia Page

Joseph S. Blatter Country of Birth Switzerland Date of Birth 10 March 1936 Mother tongue German Other Languages French, English, Spanish, Italian Place of Residence Zurich, Switzerland FIFA Executive Member Since 1998 Occupation FIFA President General Secretary 1981-1998, Technical Director 1975-1981 Biography Joseph S. (Sepp) Blatter was born on 10 March 1936 in the Swiss town of Visp, near the famous Matterhorn. He graduated from the Sion and St. Maurice colleges in Switzerland with a school-leaving certificate and then gained a degree as Bachelor of Business Administration and Economics from the Faculty of Law at Lausanne University. Joseph Blatter has one daughter. Sports activities * Active footballer from 1948 to 1971 (played for the Swiss amateur league in the top division) * Member of the Board of Xamax Neuchâtel FC from 1970 to 1975 * Member of the Panathlon Club (society of sports managers) * Since 1956 member of the Swiss Association of Sportswriters * Since 1999 member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Career Curriculum On 8 June 1998 Joseph S. Blatter (Switzerland) was elected as the successor to Dr. João Havelange (Brazil) as the eighth FIFA President. This victory at the 51st FIFA Ordinary Congress in Paris (France) elevated Joseph S. Blatter, who had already served FIFA in various positions for twenty-three years, onto the highest rang in international football. Mr. Blatter began his professional career as Head of Public Relations of the Valaisan Tourist Board in his native Switzerland and then became General Secretary of the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation (1964). He then pursued journalistic and public relations activities in the fields of sport and private industry. As Director of Sports Timing and Public Relations of Longines S.A., he was involved in the organisation of the 1972 and 1976 Olympic Games, acquiring his first taste of the international sports scene. In the summer of 1975, as Director of Technical Development Programmes at FIFA, Mr. Blatter began to set President João Havelange's projects into motion. It was the time when ideas for competition and educational programmes were germinating and the foundations being laid for competitions in the under-20 and under-17 categories as well as women's and indoor (futsal) football, all of which are pillars of FIFA's worldwide activity. In 1981 the Executive Committee of the world governing body designated the multilingual Blatter as the new General Secretary and in 1990 promoted him to Chief Executive Officer (CEO). A total of five World Cups were staged under his auspices (Spain in 1982, Mexico in 1986, Italy in 1990, USA in 1994 and France in 1998). At the same time he played a leading role in the negotiations for the television and marketing contracts and the modern commercialisation of the FIFA World Cup up to the year 2006 alongside his predecessor in the presidency, João Havelange. At the end of March 1998 the direct support and the interest manifested by numerous national associations from all the confederations prompted him to stand at the 1998 FIFA Congress presidential election as their candidate. Joseph S. Blatter was re-elected for a second term on 29 May 2002 in Seoul. And on Thursday 31 May, Joseph S. Blatter was confirmed, by acclamation, in the position for a third term of office. Philosophy: football for all, all for football Joseph S. Blatter is one of the most versatile and experienced exponents of international sports diplomacy and is totally committed to serving football, FIFA and the youth of the world. The International Olympic Committee acknowledged Mr Blatter's achievements by electing him as a new committee member (the 104th) at the 109th session in Seoul on 20 June. The FIFA President's many years of service in various domains of world football have given him the know-how and vision which are the prerequisites for steering football into the new millennium and for mastering the array of challenges in modern-day football. By setting up a permanent communications network based on state-of-the-art technology, Blatter aims to integrate not only the principal male protagonists into world football's decision-making process but increasingly also their female counterparts - women players, coaches and referees. He also aims at closer cooperation with the confederations, national associations, leagues and clubs and a more open dialogue with FIFA's economic, political, social and cultural partners. Football is the quintessential team sport which, for the FIFA President, spells "basic education, character formation and fighting spirit, allied with respect and discipline". Reinforced by the message of fair play, this will all be instrumental in fostering better understanding among all people around the world. "Football is synonymous with theatre and entertainment and is hence an object of unequalled fascination for the media. It can even spark artistic creativity and, of course, creates many jobs. But it is above all an endless source of passion and joy. It is physical movement that simultaneously moves the emotions. It is the most popular and talked-about game in the world". That is why his motto is "FOOTBALL FOR ALL, ALL FOR FOOTBALL." In the world's less privileged areas football is able to inspire hope and the promise of social advancement. Joseph S. Blatter intends to ensure that football makes a valuable contribution towards improving public health standards by means of relevant technical and scientific research thus proving that it plays an extremely important role in society in a variety of ways. The immense success of football has made it a magnet for a host of economic interest groups. The FIFA President is nevertheless determined to safeguard the game's human face. Maintaining a sound balance between the manifold facets of football is what he describes as "a constant challenge and at the same time my main objective". For many years, Joseph S. Blatter has also been committed to a wide range of humanitarian projects, since he believes that football bears a responsibility to society. Joseph S. Blatter was the driving force behind a partnership with SOS Children's Villages that started in 1994. This organisation maintains more than 130 villages for children all over the world and it benefits from FIFA's financial and material support. Since he was elected FIFA President in June 1998, Joseph S. Blatter has formed an alliance with the United Nations children's organisation, UNICEF, and he co-launched the campaign "Pure Hope, Pure Football", before embarking on the most recent campaign in collaboration with UNICEF on 20 November last year. "Say Yes for Children", a campaign launched in the run-up to the World Cup, is a worldwide campaign which aims to increase awareness of children's rights. For the first time ever, the World Cup was dedicated to a humanitarian cause under the slogan of "Say Yes for Children". Furthermore, he supported a joint project for Africa with the UN's health organisation, the WHO, called "Kick polio out of Africa". Blatter also lends aid to refugee camps by providing them with football equipment, and he and FIFA are very much committed to fighting child labour. For that reason FIFA has, under his chairmanship, signed a code of conduct with the ILO, the United Nations International Labour Organisation. Joseph S. Blatter is also member of the Foundation Board of the World Anti-Doping Agency, as an IOC representative in this important entity.

Joseph S. Blatter (born 10 March 1936) is the 8th and current President of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association). He was elected on 8 June 1998, succeeding João Havelange. Life and career Blatter was born in Visp, Canton Valais, Switzerland. He studied in Sion, Switzerland before he received a degree in business and economics from the University of Lausanne in 1959. Blatter has a long and varied history including posts such as Head of Public Relations of the Valaisan Tourist Board in his native Switzerland, as well as General Secretary of the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation. He was Director of Sports Timing and Relations of Longines S.A. and was involved in the organization of the 1972 and 1976 Olympic Games. In the early 1970s, Blatter was elected president of the World Society of Friends of Suspenders, an organisation which tried to stop women replacing suspender belts with pantyhose. Since 1975 Blatter has been working at FIFA, first as Technical Director (1975–1981), then General Secretary (1981–1998) before his election as FIFA President in 1998. He was re-elected as head of FIFA in 2002 and was re-elected unopposed for another four years on 31 May 2007 even though only 66 of 207 FIFA members nominated him. Sepp Blatter sought another term as FIFA president in December 2009 and was elected once more. Controversy Allegations of corruption Sepp Blatter's 1998 election to the presidency of FIFA over UEFA President Lennart Johansson occurred amidst much controversy. His 2002 candidacy has been marked with rumours of financial irregularities and backroom dealings, culminating with direct accusations of bribery, by a third party, made in the British press by Farra Ado, vice-president of the Confederation of African Football and president of the Somali Football Federation, who claimed to have been offered $100,000 to vote for Blatter in 1998. Amidst internal divisions, FIFA's secretary-general Blatter's deputy and former protégé, Michel Zen-Ruffinen drew up a 30-page dossier outlining allegations of financial mismanagement within the organisation. The dossier alleged that the collapse of FIFA's marketing partner ISL had led to losses of up to $100m under Blatter's management. The allegations were backed by Johansson, and the dossier was handed to the Swiss authorities, but they cleared Blatter of any wrong doing and FIFA had to pay all the costs. An internal investigation within FIFA was halted by Blatter because members of it broke confidentiality agreements. This questionable behaviour led him to remove Zen-Ruffinen from office immediately before the FIFA World Cup 2002. 2006 FIFA World Cup After a controversial second-round match between Portugal and the Netherlands, which saw referee Valentin Ivanov issuing a record 16 yellow cards and four red cards, Blatter lambasted the officiating, and said that Ivanov should have given himself a yellow card for his poor performance as a referee. However he later regretted his words and promised to officially apologise to Ivanov. This apology was never given, and the referee was removed from further officiating. During the 2006 FIFA World Cup final in Germany, Blatter's absence during the prize-podium event was noted and criticized in international media. It was claimed that the reason Blatter did not attend was because he was upset that Italy won instead of France. Blatter later apologised and said the reason he had shunned the presentation ceremony was because he was afraid of being whistled. 2010 FIFA World Cup Blatter publicly laughed at a request by the Football Association of Ireland that Ireland be the 33rd entrant following a controversial hand ball incident in their qualification. Ireland had been drawn against France after a highly controversial seeding system was put into place. This seemed to favour higher ranked teams and Blatter's very late decision to implement it was seen by many as a last ditch attempt to ensure that the higher ranked teams went through. Ireland had lost the first leg 1-0. However, during the second leg, with Ireland leading 1-0 and minutes to go, Thierry Henry used his hand twice to control the ball in the penalty area and deliver a pass to William Gallas for an easy goal. The criticism attracted by Blatter's refusal to allow goal-line technology or video replays intensified following the controversial Lampard disallowed goal in the match between England and Germany on 27 June 2010. Two days later, Blatter stated that he deplored the "evident referee mistakes" in the England v Germany and Mexico v Argentina matches, and apologised to the English Football Association and the Mexican Football Federation (the two organizations directly concerned by the referees' mistakes), acknowledging that Lampard had indeed scored against Germany and that Tevez's goal against Mexico had been scored from an offside position. He added: "It is obvious that after the experiences so far at this World Cup it would be a nonsense not to re-open the file on goal-line technology. [...] We will come out with a new model in November on how to improve high level referees. [...] I cannot disclose more of what we are doing but something has to be changed." 2018/2022 FIFA World Cup It was reported that Blatter had "cut an unofficial deal with UEFA head Michel Platini" to ensure Europe would receive the 2018 World Cup, such that if the non-European bids did not withdraw from 2018 "they will find themselves frozen out and not given any backing by the FIFA High Command, damaging their chances of being serious contenders for the second tournament." Eleven bids were submitted in March 2009 covering thirteen nations. Mexico and Indonesia withdrew. Five of the remaining nine bids, South Korea, Qatar, Japan, Australia and United States were only for the 2022 World Cup, while all the others were bidding for both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. However, since all of the bids for the 2018 World Cup were from European nations, and FIFA's rules dictate that countries belonging to confederations that hosted either of the two preceding tournaments are not eligible to host, the bids of England, Russia, Netherlands/Belgium and Spain/Portugal were forced to be for 2018 only. Controversy came in the British press when Russia were awarded the 2018 games, with England receiving just two of their 'promised' votes - this controversy was dismissed by Blatter as the English showing themselves to be "bad losers". The awarding of the 2022 games to Qatar was also controversial, the illegal status of homosexuality in the tiny nation caused Blatter to joke that "I would say they [gay fans] should refrain from any sexual activities." The awarding of hosting to Russia was controversial to do the high levels of racism in the country, whilst the awarding of hosting to Qatar was controversial due to the excessive heat and ability of the small 1.7 million strong Islamic nation to cope with the influx of around 400,000 fans - and the alcohol the fans were expected to bring with them. Women's football Blatter incurred the ire of female footballers in 2004 when he suggested that women should "wear tighter shorts and low cut shirts... to create a more female aesthetic" and attract more male fans, remarks that were ridiculed in the press. Foreign quotas Blatter incurred much criticism during 2007 and 2008 for his persistence in attempting to change EU employment law regarding the number of foreign players football clubs can field at any one time. His plans are to set a restriction to 5 foreign players and having 6 players from the said team's own nationality. Blatter believes this would help the countries' national sides by having more national players playing in their leagues. Blatter has often referred to the English Premier League as one of the major problems in football and uses it as an example, due to the influence of foreign players, coaches and owners in the top teams. Changes to the game made under Blatter * The silver goal replaced the golden goal rule in extra time of play-off matches. Under the golden goal rule, the match ends immediately if one side scores in extra time. The silver goal rule states that the match will end at the half-time period in extra time if one team is leading – otherwise the match will continue until the end of the extra time period. Some fans believe that this rule change makes the game less exciting, while others felt that the game is more fair as a result. The new rule was first applied in the Euro 2004 competition, but it has since been discontinued along with golden goal. All competitions have now reverted to the traditional extra time rules, i.e. they must play the full amount of extra time, no matter what the score is. * Since the 2002 World Cup, the current World Cup champion no longer automatically qualifies for the next World Cup finals, as was the case for the champions of all 16 previous World Cups. * National associations must now enforce immediate suspensions of all players sent off during a game, even if television replays offer compelling evidence of a player's innocence. In particular, Blatter insists that a referee's judgement must be seen as final and that mistakes are part of the game. The FA, however, has refused to follow this directive, and allows appeals against straight red cards (though not those resulting from two yellows). * Under Blatter, starting in 2004, the game implemented the booking of players who remove their shirts after scoring a goal, as well as those who are guilty of 'over-zealous celebrations'. The rationale for this rule change is that football is a global sport, and thus the sensibilities of conservative nations and spectators must be respected. * In 2007, Blatter decided that no football matches will be played above 2500 metres (8200 ft) above sea level. This number was revised to 3000 metres (9840 feet) on 26 June 2007. This may have been aimed to split the opposition group formed by Colombia, Ecuador (who play at altitudes below 3000 metres but above 2500), Bolivia and Peru (with stadiums above 3000 metres). This has dramatic consequences for the Bolivian national team, whose stadium is located more than 3000 metres above sea level. Blatter commented that football matches at extreme altitudes belong to the past, and that they are risky for players' health. However, no comprehensive medical studies have been shown to prove this. The Andean nations argue that playing in hot, sea level temperature is in fact more dangerous, citing the death of Marc-Vivien Foé as an example. Honours * The Olympic Order * Honorary member of the Swiss Football Association * Numerous awards from clubs, national associations and confederations * Knighthood (with the title of Dato') from the Sultanate of Pahang * The 'Order of Good Hope', awarded by the Republic of South Africa * 'Order of Independence (1st class)' of Jordan * 'Grand Cordon du Wissam Alaouite' of Morocco * 'Medalla al Mérito Deportivo ' of Bolivia. * 'Grand Cordon de l'Ordre de la République Tunisienne' of Tunisia * 'International Humanitarian of the Year' as well as the 'Golden Charter of Peace and Humanitarianism' from the International Humanitarian League for Peace and Tolerance * Recipient of the 'Global Award for Peace' awarded by the International Amateur Athletic Association. * Recipient of the Rank of Grand Officer of Wissam Al Arch (Morocco) * Recipient of the UEFA Order of Merit in Diamond * Recipient of the Award of Merit from Yemen * Knight of the French Legion of Honour * Recipient of the 'Order of the Two Niles' from Sudan * Recipient of the 'Gare St Lazare Award' from Central African Republic * Honoured in Djibouti as a 'Commandeur de L'Ordre National du 27 Juin 1977' * Supreme companion of 'Tambo' of President of the Republic of South Africa: Thabo Mbeki * Ordre de la Médaille de la Reconnaissance 'Commander Grade' on behalf of the prime minister of the Central African Republic Célestin Leroy Gaoumbalet * Honorary Doctor of Arts, De Montfort University (Leicester) * Honorary Doctorate in Philosophy from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth * Honorary Citizenship in Visp (hometown, Switzerland) * Honorary member of Real Madrid * Recipient of the 'Tenth Anniversary Soccerex Merit Award' * Recipient of the 'AFC Diamond of Asia Award' 2006 * Order of the National Olympic Committee * 'Prince Yaroslav the Wise' Order V grade in Ukraine * Order of 'Dustlik' (Friendship) in Uzbekistan * 'Danaker' in Kyrgyzstan * 'Crown of Peace' in India * Doctor of Letters Honoris Causa of the International University in Geneva * Order of Francisco de Miranda - First Class, Palace Miraflores, Venezuela 2007, received from Hugo Chavez - President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela * Diploma of Honorary Doctor of the Azerbaijan State Academy of physical culture and sport * Honor Diploma from Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan Republic President * Honorary Doctoral Degree of Business Administration in Sport Management, Bangkok * Honorary Citizen by Governor of Bangkok Apirak Kosayothin * Bahrain Medal of the First Degree * Honorary Membership of Swiss Olympic Association * Best World Sports award from the Graduate School of Business Administration of Zurich 2008 * Japan's 'Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun' * 'Dostik' Order from the President of the Kazakhstan Republic, Nursultan Abish-uly Nazarbayev * Liberian Humane Order of African Redemption

Interesting stuff all. I won't be watching soccer for a while though, now where's that remote gone...