ZURICH (AP) — President Sepp Blatter called on FIFA delegations to back him for a fourth presidential term on Wednesday and said he was the “captain” to clean the sport of the bribery scandals that have soiled the image of soccer’s governing body.
Hours ahead of the election, in which Blatter is unopposed after his only challenger was embroiled in a bribery scandal, the president told his Congress that the worst scandal in the body’s history could be solved within FIFA itself.
Blatter said in an opening address that “the FIFA ship is in troubled waters but this ship must be brought back on the right track.” He added that “I am the captain of the ship” and that “it is therefore my duty and responsibility to see to it that we get back on track.”
