In a historic decision, FIFA president Sepp Blatter, vice president Michel Platini, and FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke have all been suspended for 90 days by the FIFA ethics committee. This is obviously huge news that could mean Blatter has already slithered out his final day in office, but you wouldn’t get any of that from the hilariously vague headline that FIFA’s official website used to announce the news.
The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings for July have been released and as usual, there are some curious placements. Argentina have replaced the world champions in the top spot despite losing in the Copa America final, Romania and Wales are in the top 10, the USA dropped seven spots despite beating the Netherlands and Germany (in friendlies), and Algeria are the only non-European or South American team in the top 20.
Naturally, FIFA’s bizarre and consistently useless rankings prompt fans and journalists alike to wonder exactly how they are compiled. Now, for the first time ever, DT can reveal the full process of how your FIFA rankings are made.
Recently I lost a dear friend: my pet turtle Li’l Wayne. For many years, Li’l Wayne has been my closest friend and confidant. He was a well behaved turtle, never judging me or saying a bad word about anyone. Intensely loyal, Li’l Wayne was at my side through good times and better. But now he’s gone. To turtle heaven. Forever.
My latest private detective story for Howler Magazine* appears in the newly released issue seven and sees our mediocre investigator dragged into the search for the Jules Rimet Trophy — the original World Cup prize, which has been missed since 1983. Tony is forced to deal with a host of shady characters, including a pair of treacherous FIFA executives.
Though you should definitely pick up the new mag, you can read the story in full on Howler’s site.
And while you’re there, I highly recommend checking out DT contributor Ryan Bailey’s piece on the football rockstar you never saw, Robin Friday, as well!
*Previous cases involving Mario Balotelli and Jose Mourinho’s last days at Real Madrid appeared in issues two and four, respectively.
After six months of intense consultation, the razor sharp minds of FIFA’s task force for the 2018-2024 international match calendar have finally realized what everyone else already knew: that Qatar is quite hot from May through September. As a result, they have recommended that late November to late December as the most viable period for the 2022 World Cup with the support of all six confederations.
