* English FA proposal outvoted by 172-17
* Blatter set to be re-elected unopposed later on Wednesday
* British government backs FA call for more transparency (adds FA reaction, Cameron spokesman quotes)
By Mike Collett
ZURICH, June 1 (Reuters) - FIFA voted to go ahead with its presidential election on Wednesday after the world soccer governing body’s Congress rejected a proposal from the English FA that it should be postponed.
Seventeen associations voted in favour of the proposal at the annual Congress while 172 voted against, leaving incumbent Sepp Blatter to be re-elected unopposed later on Wednesday.
FIFA said 206 associations had been eligible to vote.
England’s proposal, raised in light of a damaging corruption scandal that led to the suspension of two senior FIFA officials following cash-for-votes allegations, had needed 75 percent of the votes to be approved.
“We need a strong president, a strong FIFA to move forward, otherwise the next few months will be open to all kinds of allegations,” said Cyprus FA president Costakis Koutsokoumnis, one of several delegates to address Congress.
“We must not allow third parties, politicians, people outside this room to enter FIFA’s agenda. We must trust the president to present us with a valid programme to fix whatever we, the people of football, think is wrong with FIFA.
“To postpone elections at a time when a lot of work must be put into FIFA, that would be extremely wrong.”
NOT ALONE
The English FA said they believed their proposal had been worthwhile.
“While we did not succeed in deferring the FIFA presidential election, it was positive to be joined by 16 other nations in supporting our democratic request for the vote to be delayed,” said chairman David Bernstein in a statement after the vote.
“A further 17 nations abstaining clearly shows that we are not alone or isolated in our views in relation to the current situation FIFA finds itself in.
“We believe it was very important that we were true to ourselves by making clear our position through our statement on Tuesday, and by carrying this forward openly to the FIFA Congress earlier today.
“We are confident The FA has played a significant role as a catalyst for change in the way World Cup hosts will be selected in the future.
“This must be a more open transparent process.”
British Prime Minister David Cameron’s spokesman said the government supported the FA’s position, telling reporters:
“Our view is that we need to see greater accountability and greater transparency in FIFA.
“That organisation needs to reform. We backed the FA in abstaining from the vote and we agreed with the FA, we believe that FIFA should have suspended the presidential election until the investigations which are under way had been completed”.
“The most important thing in all of this is that the public have confidence in FIFA. In order for that to happen, certainly in this country, we need FIFA to reform, ” he said during a regular briefing on govermment business.
* Blatter set to be re-elected unopposed later on Wednesday
* British government backs FA call for more transparency (adds FA reaction, Cameron spokesman quotes)
By Mike Collett
ZURICH, June 1 (Reuters) - FIFA voted to go ahead with its presidential election on Wednesday after the world soccer governing body’s Congress rejected a proposal from the English FA that it should be postponed.
Seventeen associations voted in favour of the proposal at the annual Congress while 172 voted against, leaving incumbent Sepp Blatter to be re-elected unopposed later on Wednesday.
FIFA said 206 associations had been eligible to vote.
England’s proposal, raised in light of a damaging corruption scandal that led to the suspension of two senior FIFA officials following cash-for-votes allegations, had needed 75 percent of the votes to be approved.
“We need a strong president, a strong FIFA to move forward, otherwise the next few months will be open to all kinds of allegations,” said Cyprus FA president Costakis Koutsokoumnis, one of several delegates to address Congress.
“We must not allow third parties, politicians, people outside this room to enter FIFA’s agenda. We must trust the president to present us with a valid programme to fix whatever we, the people of football, think is wrong with FIFA.
“To postpone elections at a time when a lot of work must be put into FIFA, that would be extremely wrong.”
NOT ALONE
The English FA said they believed their proposal had been worthwhile.
“While we did not succeed in deferring the FIFA presidential election, it was positive to be joined by 16 other nations in supporting our democratic request for the vote to be delayed,” said chairman David Bernstein in a statement after the vote.
“A further 17 nations abstaining clearly shows that we are not alone or isolated in our views in relation to the current situation FIFA finds itself in.
“We believe it was very important that we were true to ourselves by making clear our position through our statement on Tuesday, and by carrying this forward openly to the FIFA Congress earlier today.
“We are confident The FA has played a significant role as a catalyst for change in the way World Cup hosts will be selected in the future.
“This must be a more open transparent process.”
British Prime Minister David Cameron’s spokesman said the government supported the FA’s position, telling reporters:
“Our view is that we need to see greater accountability and greater transparency in FIFA.
“That organisation needs to reform. We backed the FA in abstaining from the vote and we agreed with the FA, we believe that FIFA should have suspended the presidential election until the investigations which are under way had been completed”.
“The most important thing in all of this is that the public have confidence in FIFA. In order for that to happen, certainly in this country, we need FIFA to reform, ” he said during a regular briefing on govermment business.
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