Vancouver’s city manager says the news that embattled FIFA president Sepp Blatter is stepping down is “terrific.”
“The perception that there is a problem has been around for a long time and I think it’s starting to be addressed,” said Penny Ballem by phone from Ottawa.
“The position of the City of Vancouver is that it is very appropriate and we hope it gets addressed and FIFA moves on to become an organization that is free of that.”
FIFA’s Women’s World Cup starts in just a few days in cities across Canada, including Vancouver. But the world’s attention has been captured by the arrest last week of several high-ranking FIFA officials on racketeering and bribery charges brought by the United States Department of Justice.
While Blatter was not among those arrested, the charges have drawn attention to long-standing questions around how the soccer body operates; the hundreds of migrant workers who have died building facilities for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar; and past comments Blatter has made about female soccer players.
Blatter was re-elected as president of FIFA on May 31 but announced his resignation just hours ago.
The City of Vancouver hasn’t actively lobbied FIFA for changes, but Ballem believes host cities should play a more active role in social justice and ethics issues.
“We have a lot of accountability and responsibility and it’s our brand,” Ballem said. “It’s our future that’s on the line, but I think we’re just starting to realize that as host cities around the world we also have a lot of leverage.”
For instance, Ballem said, Coun. Tim Stevenson visited Sochi, Russia during the 2014 Winter Olympics to urge the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and to draw attention to Russia’s anti-gay laws.
In 2014, the IOC added an anti-discrimination clause to its rules for host cities.
Hosting the Women’s World Cup is expected to provide a big economic boost to Vancouver and the five other host cities. A lot of the benefit is expected to flow from the intense international media attention on the tournament.
“This is a huge global event,” Ballem said. “The actual media coverage is bigger than the winter Olympics and Paralympics.”
@jenstden
