Putin congratulated Blatter’s re-election as FIFA president – RBC

FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter

Photo: REUTERS 2015

According to the press secretary of the president, Dmitry Peskov, the telegram “Putin expressed confidence that the professionalism and high credibility Blatter will help further expand the geography and the popularity of football».

Putin said that Russia is interested in cooperation with FIFA as a whole and in the preparation of the World Cup in 2018 in particular.

Blatter was re-elected FIFA president for a fifth term on May 29 after his opponent, Jordanian Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein, conceded defeat. A few days before the presidential elections took place in the organization of the FIFA one of the largest in its history of corruption scandals. Swiss police arrested seven officials of FIFA, which US authorities accused of bribery and money laundering. US law enforcement officials suspected of football taking bribes worth more than $ 150 million at the conclusion of marketing contracts and the sale of rights to broadcast the competition.

In connection with the scandal Blatter was criticized by the head of UEFA Michel Platini, who said, in the case of Blatter’s re-election to the presidency of FIFA European Football Confederation boycott the World Cup.

Even after FIFA officials were charged with corruption, Blatter said that the reason for the scandal was the choice of the venue for the world championships in 2018 and 2022 in Russia and Qatar. “If the papers were in envelopes with the names of other countries, I think we would not have today’s problems,” – said Blatter during the FIFA Congress.

Against corruption scandal Putin defended Blatter. The Russian leader said he believes the arrests of officials of FIFA US attempts “to extend its jurisdiction to other countries” and to prevent the re-election of Blatter for another term. Assumptions Putin on US attempts to interfere in the internal procedures of FIFA rejected a State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke.

Blatter, who is president of FIFA since 1998, after the re-election gave an interview to Swiss television, in which he stated that “shocked” by allegations FIFA address from the US. Blatter also condemned the “hate campaign”, which, he believes, before the election against him launched by UEFA.