Yesterday I discussed the consequences of poor decisions by leadership, and no sooner than the first blog went out that news of former FIFA president Sepp Blatter resigning just days after winning a fifth term in office hit the airwaves. The Twitterverse was ablaze with reactions ranging from glee to utter disgust that it took so long, with rumors of bribery and corruption running rampant over the organization for years. After all, when it comes to the world's most popular game (except in the States) countries consider it a privilege to host the World Cup once very 4 years, and would sacrifice whatever it takes to have them.
Whether it was South Africa in 2010, the 2016 Copa America, or the highly controversial selection of Qatar in 2022, reports that they won the bid based on bribery accusations began to surface after the arrest of 7 FIFA officials took place last week. While there was an attempt to push back the vote for the presidency of FIFA, it was ultimately denied as Blatter won once Prince Ali of Jordan withdrew after the first round of voting. A myriad of questions arose after the arrests took place, namely how long would it be before Blatter's name came up as a possible conspirator by lower-tier officials quick to paint him as the mastermind? Also, would newly appointed Attorney General Loretta Lynch have gotten involved if it didn't benefit the US in some way? As of this post, there has been no decision to remove the World Cup from either Russia in 2018 or Qatar in 2022.
Should it have even come to this point? Bluntly speaking, no, and while Blatter has yet to be accused of taking any bribes himself, his leadership has been in question for years in regards to shady dealings, especially after his long time assistant Jack Warner, former president of CONCACAF, left the organization. Qatar was the biggest question mark as it was considered the worst country out of all the bidders going into the vote, with temperatures reaching upwards of 122 degrees in the summer. Worse yet, hundreds of workers have died due to the extreme conditions while building the stadiums in Qatar. There are workers from Nepal who have reportedly been unable to visit their families and are instead forced to stay there to complete the project.
This all could've been prevented had Blatter and the other members of FIFA took the time to consider the risk in putting the games in a country with such a poor environment. Another result of poor leadership but even worse, it's due to the love of money, which is the root of all evil. It creates corruption when left unchecked. It can poison the minds of even the noblest of people when the love of money becomes greater than operating in common sense.
Power when used correctly can be a benefit to the community, but when decisions are based on greed, it has dire consequences, and in some cases, death.
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