01x02 - Episode 2

[bunniefuu]

Now that you have a new president,

my greatest wish is to unite the family.

It was an election campaign

in which sometimes we played with...

...certain things
that were allowed or not allowed.

You know, sometimes on the pitch,
we kick, we pull on a shirt.

I wouldn't say
we tackle from behind

because that one is not allowed anymore.

But more importantly, we now need
the unity of football to be upheld.

The big football family, FIFA,
will be united going forward.

That is my goal.
That's all. Thank you very much.

I don't know
whether I should say...

see you again

or goodbye.

Then at the sudden,
I was president.

And then I have realized the power that...

Thanks to you
and with you, I learnt to be patient.

I learnt what it is to unite.

But I was...

I was a little bit surprised myself,
the power that I was given.

See you again,
but also goodbye. Thank you.

FIFA is really powerful
because it's got the World Cup.

And countries fall over themselves to try
and host the World Cup in their country.

It gives their country image building

that you just can't achieve
with anything else.

The World Cup is
the only one event in the world

which is broadcasted
in the majority of countries.

I don't think you can imagine
about something else

bringing one million people in the street.

And the World Cup is
the number one way for FIFA to make money.

So, because of the power
of the biggest football event

around the world every four years

that gives FIFA
and the FIFA president real power

and so much leverage
over actual countries.

But that power is
a trap for corruption.

I started to develop the idea
of João Havelange.

He said football shall not only be
for Europe and South America,

but all around the world.

So, when I was elected,

I started my, uh... mission.

In 1998, FIFA presented itself
as a force for good around the world.

It was doing development programs
all around the world.

It was this great global football body

that had nearly every country
in the world as part of it.

It was sort of the UN of football.

And that's when
the Goal Program started.

The Goal Project was an idea,
an initiative of President Blatter.

The so-called Goal Project,

which is a tailor-made project,

which will go directly to the roots

of those national associations
that are really in need.

The first idea was
that every country

should have a national headquarters.

And then there was... $400,000
was the budget for such a project.

It was about stadiums.

It was about artificial pitch.
It was about educational program.

For Platini, the Goal Program,
he saw it as something that was wonderful

because he was going to distribute money.

And for him,
it was the politics of football

that he had dreamed about.

As for everything
that happened behind the scenes,

things that were less glorious
and even a bit shady,

Platini didn't want to hear about that.

There's a lot of stories
that money went to associations

and then what was supposed
to be built wasn't built

and that money maybe went missing.

This building was meant to be
the hub for football activities in Kenya.

These chicken are entering what was meant
to be the main conference hall,

complete with a kitchen,
but they are now calling it home.

It is one of the projects
which were funded

by the world governing body, FIFA,

to the tune of 35 million shillings.

Currently, the silence is loud.

Corruption is rampant
when you're dealing with poor countries

and when people can't make ends meet.

And the unfortunate thing was they,
FIFA, didn't ask for reports or evidence,

which meant that no one knew
what happened to the money.

When FIFA started
to describe itself as a bank...

And it was a bank. FIFA was the bank
for the member associations, in a way.

Yeah, for sure, you create...
you create some issues.

This is meant to be
the core of what FIFA's about,

and we have to recognize
that the game does hugely expand

and also become much, much more lucrative.

There is a legacy of development
from Sepp Blatter's presidency.

And those were the promises that he'd made
that had got him the vote

in the election of the FIFA president.

How many players
come from the African continent?

How many players from the Caribbean?

How many players from Asia?

This is how you have to see
the future of football.

The future of football must remain
this great expression of hope

for youngsters around the world.

That's where he got
this strong base of countries saying,

"We know that we can trust him."

But then there's the cynical view
that it's a political organization

and you know that if you make sure
the money keeps flowing,

that's what's gonna win you the votes.

Not only the participants
in the World Cup

shall benefit of the income
of this competition,

but the whole FIFA family
will be directly affected

to the development programs,

going back to you,
national associations,

and going also back to you,
the confederations.

It was in Sepp Blatter's first term

that one of the monumental issues happens,

which is the collapse

of International Sport and Leisure,
ISL, in 2001.

The company that had originally been
set up by Adidas owner Horst Dassler

to buy up marketing rights,

television rights,

and the sponsorship rights

and sell them around the world

had this almighty financial collapse.

FIFA lost everything.

I mean, they lost their bank.
ISL were the bank.

When that money
stopped coming through,

there was no quick remedy to it.

There's a huge mess left behind,

and it's a mess that has both economic,

um, and political consequences for FIFA.

FIFA were dependent on ISL
for all this money that they needed

to make sure
that all the different mouths were fed.

And they suddenly have,
like, an urgent financial crisis.

And it has to fix this very quickly.

The most powerful man in world football
is facing a battle to keep his job.

Sepp Blatter...

Sepp Blatter is facing
a series of questions

which read more like allegations
concerning his judgment,

even his integrity,
in dealing with the firm ISL.

Blatter had wanted to hide,

and they could hide it
for a certain while.

And then a certain avalanche started to...

to roll against FIFA.

Michel Zen-Ruffinen
was a Swiss lawyer.

And when Blatter won
the '98 election,

he promoted Zen-Ruffinen

to be the secretary general of FIFA.

But in 2002,

he started to ask some questions.

He had compiled a document

which he said showed
mismanagement on a huge scale

under the Blatter presidency.

I still remember
how we opposed Sepp Blatter.

It was unique. It was like
a Fellini movie. It was unbelievable.

We have identified a lot of problems.

Misleading accounting practices,

some conflicts of interest.

They also show that there could be
corruption within the organization.

Zen-Ruffinen puts together
a coalition of ExCo members

who are gonna demand
better financial accountability

and also demand that Blatter
either deal with it or step down.

We believe FIFA President Blatter
has overstepped his authority.

I want people to know

that the FIFA finances are
in a serious situation.

Nobody seems...
Nobody seems to take this seriously.

They did have
a criminal complaint made,

but he denied all the allegations.

I have not committed any things

which a court should consider
as an offense.

I have done nothing
against the statutes of FIFA.

I have done nothing...
nothing against my conscience.

It becomes very political,

and friendship is more important.

I would like to give the floor
to Mr. Chuck Blazer.

Quite frankly, I'm somewhat surprised

that the chairman
of the Internal Audit Committee

has walked into a crowded theater
and yelled, "Fire."

There is no fire.

I guess, Mr. President,

that all of this noise

really should be a credit to you,

to the work that you have done,

which has now been relegated
to this divisive political campaign

that has occurred
over these last few months.

When you see this happening,
you understand

that those who are representing
the national associations

in a FIFA congress,

they don't know anything about finances.

Blatter could go to the stage
and present to the members of FIFA

that there was absolutely
no problem with the money,

because he had cash in the pocket.

But he was actually selling
future competitions

to be able to show that.

He is very convincing, charming.

If it would have been a private company,
it would have gone bankrupt.

Nothing happened.
It was like a smooth, uh, summer wind.

Blatter was
seriously challenged again in 2002.

This time,
the Europeans back Issa Hayatou.

- Bonjour, Mr. Hayatou.
- Bonjour, bonjour.

He is from Cameroon.

They think he's gonna be
more of a vote winner

to the African countries
and countries outside Europe.

They lost in '98.

Now they see another opportunity
to get anyone other than Blatter.

It is like a football match.

You have to learn to win,
and you have to learn to lose,

but I do hope that I'm going to win.

The strategy
of putting Hayatou in is interesting

because they think perhaps putting
an African will get out the Swiss guy.

They can put in someone they can control.

It's always difficult
to beat an incumbent president.

It's nearly impossible.

A FIFA president is too strong,
and his backyard is too big.

The candidate elected as FIFA president
for the next term of office

is Mr. Joseph S. Blatter.

He won
a resounding election victory,

and then he took his revenge
on Zen-Ruffinen.

And concerning
the general secretary,

he will be out of any responsibility
which could happen to FIFA.

So, let him there where he is.

Now, I... I am now...

Michel Zen-Ruffinen,

a countryman

who I had brought in,

really, with pleasure.

And then I had to get rid of him.

Yesterday,
I was hoping for democracy.

Unfortunately, today,
you members of the congress

and those of us on this podium
didn't get it.

A lot of people
say, "Zen-Ruffinen's a FIFA elite."

"He was about power, influence,
authority, just like everybody else."

Well, it wasn't just like everybody else.
That's simply incorrect.

I'm looking at the communications
where the accountability effort

is being undertaken,
and I wasn't seeing that anywhere else.

So there was something different
about what he was trying to do.

Let's hope, sincerely, let's hope for FIFA
because this, uh, this congress has shown

that the organization is
really in a very bad shape.

- Thank you very much.
- Thank you.

My dear friends...

it is... really...

Sepp Blatter's come through
incredible challenges.

He's come through the collapse of ISL,

and he's come through
this absolutely elemental battle

that's been waged
by people on the Executive Committee

and his own secretary general
against him.

I register your deep trust,

your deep trust in FIFA and in me!

Having won a battle like that,

he's very, very well set
to be the president of FIFA,

king of all he surveys, really.

Let's work together, and let's forget
what has happened in the past months.

Thank you!

Every country's football has
a football association,

and then they're all signed up
to the continental federation,

which is called a confederation.

Each of those confederations
then elects a number of members

to sit round the table
in the governing body of FIFA.

It was called the Executive Committee,
and it had 24 members altogether.

Just stand on this side.

They would meet
periodically a few times a year

to make high-level decisions for FIFA.

And this one key political event,

a vote for which country
hosts the World Cup,

that decision was taken
by the Executive Committee.

It was indeed
the most powerful institution of football,

as it was, in fact,
the top of the pyramid.

I had that feeling at certain moments
that the executive of FIFA,

of a president who brought
everybody good together,

was, in fact, a world power, yes.

The ExCo is not the most
buddy-buddy place in the whole world.

It's a bunch of very power-hungry people,

all of whom are ready and willing
to put a knife in each other's back

whenever they can.

There was no talk about football.

Only talks about, uh...
fight, you know. Fight for fight.

These people turn out to be like children.

No limit for their,
uh, nonsense, you know.

I think most people were there
for not particularly savory reasons.

Most of these people
were running the sport

because they saw it as a business,

a family business
they can make money out of.

Jack Warner was ideal for that

because Jack Warner was
a consummate politician

who understood exactly
how to make people happy

and to get what he wanted, which was
higher and higher positions of power.

By that time, Jack Warner had moved up

to a very senior position
in international football.

There was nobody else with the power
and authority that he had.

He said to me,

"If you look at the composition
of the FIFA executive now,

you would see that I am
the most experienced person

on the FIFA executive."

"But there are some problems."

"My country, Trinidad,
is one of the only countries,

from people on that executive,
which has never been to the World Cup."

All my life,
that's my dream.

Everything has been geared towards
qualifying for a World Cup.

And no country has the kind of grit,
guts, determination to succeed

and to qualify
for a World Cup final as we have.

And we shall reach there very soon.

The final whistle has blown.

Trinidad and Tobago
have made it to the promised land.

They will be in Germany 2006.

Dennis Lawrence, magnificent header.

Looking back at the World Cup,

and even talking about it now,

we never spoke about playing
for Liverpool and Manchester United.

We spoke about playing
for Trinidad in a World Cup.

That was the discussion.
That is the pinnacle for every player.

When the final whistle
went in Bahrain, I totally broke down.

I just couldn't contain myself.

But I tell you, we shall... we shall,

in a sense, light up Germany
in a way that no country has ever done.

We gave everything
for our country.

Qualifying for a World Cup was our life.

We were given that opportunity
because of the sacrifices we made.

I played at a very, very fortunate time
for Trinidad and Tobago

because of Jack Warner.

He was everything
that was Trinidad and Tobago football.

He was everything
that was Caribbean football.

Every decision for the Caribbean
was made right here in Trinidad,

in Jack's office,

and he was the power base
for football on this side of the world.

That aura, that presence
that surrounds him

was just... for me as a young footballer,
was just surreal.

Jack made all the decisions
around our football for quite some time.

He wanted to have
an influence on people's careers.

We saw him solely
as this man that was trying to help us.

Once we had qualified for the World Cup,

we started to talk
about what happens next.

What do players get paid
per World Cup game?

What... what happens?
You know, what... what do they do?

Do you get a qualification bonus?
What is that?

We decided to call a meeting
with Mr. Warner.

And we have a list of demands as well.

So, the first thing we decided on
was a split of 70/30

for the commercial, uh, revenues
that were derived from the World Cup.

We were like, "No, we can't ask..."

"Nobody's gonna give us 30%.
That's just ridiculous."

Jack said, "Done. No problem."

So, we all looked at each other,
like, "Okay."

We expected some sort of pushback.

We moved on to the next point,
which was the qualification bonus

that FIFA gave to each nation
for qualifying for the World Cup.

That was where things started
to get a little bit sticky.

He started to get a bit agitated
in the discussions,

but we wanted it to be 50/50,
and he agreed on 50/50.

We just went into a meeting
with the most powerful man in football

and got him to agree with us.

We won.

That probably was
the most joyous conversation we had

when it comes to finances.

After that, things started
to go very, very downhill.

Trinidad and Tobago,
how high can they lift themselves

for the biggest match of their lives?

Who knows?
It could be a romp. It could be a rout.

It could be the greatest day

in the short history
of Caribbean football.

Walking out the tunnel,
lining up,

and hearing your national anthem play,

that was easily
my proudest moment in sport,

being able to sing
my country's national anthem

at the world's biggest stage.

And somehow I was able
to see my parents in the stands,

and my dad,
and the emotion that they carried.

It didn't matter what happened afterwards.

That's how it felt standing on the pitch

and being part of the World Cup.

Many of us dealt
with Mr. Warner for quite a long time.

If we saw him, he would say,
"Yes, excellent game. You did well."

But at some point, someone would say,

"Remember that spreadsheet
you... you told us about?"

"What's happening with that?"

A spreadsheet that shows us
the commercial gains,

the commercial revenues
that were coming in.

I started seeing deductions
for accommodations in Austria

and accommodations in Germany

and airfare being deducted
from the commercial revenues.

"This is what your cut
amounts to, roughly 800 US."

I wasn't buying it.

All the trust and all the faith
that we had in Mr. Warner

went immediately out the door,

because how dare you take away
our only moment we had of... of joy,

playing in the biggest sporting occasion?

It felt like that
ripped that away from us.

After the World Cup,
I remember the coach,

he called me and he said, um,
"I see you're doing well with your club."

"I just wish
I could have you with my team."

And he said,
"But I can't select you."

"You are blacklisted."

"We're not allowed to pick any of the guys
that's involved in the bonus dispute."

That's when I realized
that we were being punished

for asking for the truth.

Eventually, the government
settled, some eight years later.

It just became
too much of an embarrassment.

They offered to settle, um, so we settled.

There is still 100 million TT dollars,
so, roughly 15 million US,

that is totally
and completely unaccounted for.

Jack never really had to account for
where that money went.

And because we're not able
to give a proper account

of what he did and did not do,

you now find yourself in a situation

that the murky waters of yesteryear

is now flowing down the drains
into the present situation.

International media
and the crowd getting excited.

There's Mr. Mandela,
Mr. Nelson Mandela, a free man,

taking his first steps
into a new South Africa.

Democracy and freedom for all
is the only way to peace.

Blatter made
a lot of promises to a lot of people.

One of the things he talked about a lot

was that if he were elected
FIFA president,

he would do everything he could
to get a World Cup to Africa.

He would support that in some way.

If we go back to the history

of Havelange running for FIFA president
and making a big issue out of apartheid...

...and then we see the end of apartheid,

and we see Nelson Mandela come up
to become this important world figure

and a symbol of getting past oppression

and getting to a more equal world,

FIFA's very eager to latch onto that.

I can state that, at FIFA,
what I did do was stand forcefully

against apartheid in South Africa.

So much so that,
when Mandela was elected president,

I went to Johannesburg,

and I went to offer him congratulations
in the name of world football.

Mr. Mandela.

Thank you. Thank you very much.

The one person
I will never forget

is Nelson Mandela.

Nelson Mandela, when I speak about him,

I am always full of emotion.

Because the first time I met him,

I was secretary general at the time,

he looked at me,

and he gave me a hug.

I'm...

And he said, uh,

"Call me Madiba."

"Call me Madiba."

I think Blatter
envisions himself as a peacemaker.

And so he thinks he's gonna become
an important world figure

beyond just football,

as some sort of international diplomat,
by getting the World Cup to Africa.

From day one, Blatter wants
the World Cup to happen in South Africa.

From day one,
he has been a friend of Africa.

From day one, he has been supporting
all the small countries.

And in 2002, I was asked to join FIFA.

They ask me, "We need more money,

so you need to build
a new commercial program,

and we give you three years

to rebuild
the commercial structure of FIFA

for the... the next World Cup.

When the next World Cup
round of bidding comes up,

South Africa is trying to get it again,
as is Morocco.

And these two countries,

they're sort of vying
with each other to get it.

Morocco was making their best effort.

They fly Blazer and Warner,
among others, to Morocco,

give them the royal treatment,
they treat them incredibly well.

But South Africa was
really determined to win it,

and they're willing to, uh, often pay,
it turns out, a great price to have it.

An international game
played in any country

has immense benefits.

Uh, South Africa is now
part of the global world.

We first met Nelson Mandela
when we went to South Africa

as part of our tour
for who was gonna get the World Cup.

The first visit was to Morocco,

the second was to Egypt,
where they both laid out the red carpet.

Then we get down to South Africa,
and Mandela is there.

Incredibly kind and gracious

and with an aura about him
almost like a force field.

You could feel this presence around him.

We would have breakfast
and dinner with him,

and he would be chatting.

And then there was
the, um, infamous trip to Trinidad

on the 22-hour plane trip with him.

On the front page
of Chuck Blazer's blog

was Chuck with his friend Nelson Mandela
in the plane going over to Trinidad.

Essentially, what we've got there is
one of the greatest men ever in history,

Nelson Mandela,

with the dishonorable Chuck.

Nelson Mandela arrives
in Trinidad and Tobago tonight,

now here on an historic visit
for two days.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter
also came outside

as he and CONCACAF President Jack Warner
waited to escort Mandela to the Oval.

Then we got to Trinidad and were
immediately brought out onto the stage,

and Mandela was so sick, he was so tired.

They brought him out, put him in a chair,
and paraded all around him

and did dances and singing.

Jack Warner had
his three votes to wield

in that voting round at FIFA
for who was gonna host the World Cup.

And so it was all to do some PR,

which would obviously be
reflected kudos for Jack Warner.

For me, I have no... I've no ego.

My whole purpose in bringing them here

is for people here to get a chance
to see these great world leaders,

uh, which... which, for me,
is once in a lifetime.

He wanted to show how powerful he was,

and this was one way of...
of proving that he was... the chief.

It wasn't until I got there
and I went, "Why is he doing this?"

"He's a very sick man."

"You can't do that
to somebody old and sick."

Everybody who wants
the World Cup has to play with the rules

of the member of the Executive Committee.

It's not the problem of the country
because they cannot do different.

They must deliver.

Jack Warner
could do what he wanted.

It was, for the Executive Committee
meeting this morning,

a very good achievement to say,

"Yes, we are proud."

"We are proud of Africa."

I discover it with you.

Connu?

The 2010 FIFA World Cup...

will be organized...

When you're gonna have a World Cup
in South Africa, the symbolism was huge.

And it was very, very apparent
when the tournament was on

about apartheid having ended

and the new post-apartheid South Africa
showing its best face to the world.

That was the pitch for it.

This has been
a struggle that's taken seven years.

And what we will do, what we must do,

is to make sure that what FIFA said,

that this will be an excellent World Cup,

we must make sure that indeed it becomes
an excellent World Cup.

That region of football
becomes a sort of passion.

It's like you give opium to people,

they smoke,
and they are happy for a few moments.

When they wake up
and then, "Oh..."

They're learning to their own problem.

It is a sort of healer for...
for deep down issues.

It's a really good ball.
It's Tshabalala!

Goal, Bafana Bafana!

Goal for South Africa!

The World Cup was given
in 2004 to South Africa.

And when I first heard about this payment

which was due to, uh, CFU

and Jack Warner by South Africa,

three years later, in 2007 or 2008.

South Africa negotiated
just for the three votes

that Warner could control,
which would be his own, Blazer,

and a third CONCACAF representative
on the ExCo.

They said it would be money awarded

to fund the African diaspora
in the Caribbean.

There was a lot of pressure
from Jack Warner

to proceed with the payments.

He came to Blatter, Blatter to me.

Documents went through FIFA,

approving money to bank accounts
controlled by Jack Warner

in the amount of $10 million.

He took in the money.

He was supposed to give
10% of this to Chuck Blazer.

South Africa offered ten million,

of which one million
was supposed to go to Chuck.

That's when I knew,
and I said, "You're kidding me."

"Jack Warner gets $9 million.
You get a million."

"What are the other guys getting?
How much money does South Africa have?"

"And is this really how it's done?"

When you know the person
who has a habit of taking bribes, uh...

Now we know
those ten million dollars also vanished.

That's just a fact.

Other members of the Executive Committee
knew exactly what Jack Warner was doing.

Nobody stopped him.
This was the perception of these guys.

They believe they can do everything
and we have no limits.

These people believe they have the right
to make money out of a World Cup.

There doesn't seem to be
any question about the fact

that it was paid to Jack Warner
for the African diaspora,

for Africans who'd been taken...

...away from Africa originally
through sl*very,

and a lot of people still living
in quite impoverished circumstances.

There could hardly be
a more valid cause on earth.

And the fact is, there was no legacy
built with that $10 million.

South Africa,
they've tried to absolve themselves.

We therefore wish to categorically deny

that our country and government
have bribed anyone to secure the rights

for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

At the onset,
we dismissed the allegations...

That was a dark spot for them,
considering the merit of their bid.

Uh, it deserved...
They deserved to host the World Cup.

They didn't deserve
to do all these other things.

It is the problem of FIFA.

If the highest body is corrupted,

it's not the problem of the people
who apply for the World Cup.

It's a problem for the people
who decide about it.

I remember that, uh, in the best times
after the World Cup in South Africa,

it was a real big start.

My predecessor told me one day,

"Sepp, now you have created a monster."

And at that time, I wouldn't believe him,

but looking back,
I would say he was... he was right.

You have to understand,
when you're part of a culture,

that's a way of life.

The FIFA's culture was a way of life.

This was a group of people who felt

that they were accountable to no one.

Mr. President, the floor is yours.

This event, FIFA's World Cup,

is the number one sporting event
in the world.

If you exist
with all of that money, power,

in your mind,

nobody is coming
to interfere with what you are doing.

And so many contenders
want to have the World Cup 2018.

The United States of America,

England,

Russia,

Qatar...

All your systems are in place

so that you become untouchable.

So, what I will propose,

that we will open the bid

for the World Cup 2018 and 2022.

But to make it together,

and then to give the FIFA Executive
the possibility to make the best choice.

It was a decision based

upon the TV rights market.

When you arrange to decide
both World Cup A and World Cup B,

which would be held four years later,
you can sell both tournaments in one go.

And that generates more income.

Was it a wrong
decision to give two World Cups together?

Commercially speaking, I don't think,
but in terms of "corruption",

because that was a big question,
uh, maybe.

Ahead of the awarding of 2010,

there were meant to be 24 ExCo members,
but there were only 22 voting.

Soccer's governing body, FIFA,

has suspended
two of its Executive Committee members.

The bans follow allegations

the Nigerian and Tahitian delegates
tried to sell their votes

during the bidding process.

They'll take no further part in the 2018
and 2022 World Cup host country decisions.

Those stories
just kept on coming.

I don't think FIFA were expecting them,

and I don't think
they knew how to handle them.

We have a structure, the Ethics Committee,

which was appointed since day one
to monitor all the bid process.

This Ethics Committee
has not only monitored,

but they have made decisions.

There were some members who were
suspended, but people are so stupid.

It's... it's insane how people are stupid.

People who were
in such a powerful position at FIFA

give something for nothing.

But it's so human.
It's so... so cheap and so human.

The decision we have taken
to put two World Cups together,

and I think
it was not the right thing to do,

but now we are in the situation
where we have to go on.

Politicians, royalty,
and football royalty,

the face of the England bid
hoping to work their magic in Zurich.

2018,
it was ultimately decided,

would go to a European nation,

and 2022 was gonna go to some nation
from some other part of the world.

Huge credit to Prince William,
who's really put so much effort in,

and to David Beckham and the whole team.

We've just got to convince the people
in there that we could do a great job.

Thanks.

In England, there was amazing
support from the community in general,

stadiums and football
of the highest standard...

I think we can trust
every one of the members.

At the end of the day,
they're football people.

And they're gonna want
a World Cup in the best country

that they think could host
the biggest sporting event in the world.

And then there was Russia.

But the roads
and the internal transportation system

weren't right for a World Cup.

And I remember President Putin
promised to improve that.

Mr. President,
how confident are you feeling

of bringing the World Cup to the USA?

And for 2022, the US
presented us with the best stadiums,

the best infrastructure and hotels...

It was all the best.

We're just gonna make
the best presentation we can.

I think it'd be good for FIFA
and good for the sport worldwide.

We certainly thought,
if you looked at 2018,

that the country whose bid was
the strongest was clearly England.

And if you looked at 2022,

the bid that was clearly
the strongest, was the US.

I hope to have the chance
to welcome all of you in 2022.

And there was no way

that any of the other bidders
were gonna fulfill all those expectations.

A FIFA World Cup in Qatar would provide
unrivaled commercial opportunities.

We knew it was an uphill battle.

We knew that the United States was,

you know, the... the... the front-runner.

We recognized that.

The FIFA Executive Committee has
undertaken the voting a few minutes ago.

The president will announce
the results of the voting.

Awarding a World Cup
should definitely not have been

an exclusive decision of the ExCo

because they abuse their power
to the nth degree.

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends,
fans of football around the world...

If you don't have
any governance in play,

if you don't have checks and balances,

if nobody controls what you're doing,

and you're not responsible
to justify it to somebody else,

it's a free lunch.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup,

ladies and gentlemen,
will be organized in Russia.

We all were kind of cynical
about motivations.

Do these people really care
about the game?

Or do they care about the game
only in the context

of what it means to them?

And now, ladies and gentlemen,

the winner to organize
the '22 FIFA World Cup

is Qatar!

When Sepp pulled out the envelope,
a gasp went up.

I remember Chuck looked at me.
He was devastated.

The first thing I did was look to my left.

The look of disappointment
on their faces was immense.

I wasn't shocked, but I was
bitterly disappointed and... angry.

Blatter was not
in favor of Qatar.

I remember. I was on stage with him.

He hit my... my side
and say, "Smile, smile."

It was for him a defeat,
and he knew

that there will be
a lot of criticism pouring into FIFA.

I told Sepp,
I said, "Listen, we're in trouble here."

And obviously, boom!