Would the stadia be ready? Would anybody melt into the pitch during the matches played in the Amazon? How many riots would there be?
Ah yes, this time last year we were waiting, with bated breath, for the start of the FIFA World Cup(TM). To mark the occasion, Undaunted wrote this paean to Sepp Blatter. A modern day Uncle Joe.
In the light of today's fun and games in Switzerland, here it is again. The really depressing thing is that Sepp has let it be known that it IS a great day for football. Self-delusional? No, that's just the way Sepp rolls. The fun never stops. Here's the piece from last year.
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Just to be different, let’s start with a figure who strides the world stage. Our great protector Sepp Blatter. I remember Sepp as the jolly host of the early years of champions league draws. Fame blossomed as he made small talk and pulling balls out of a bowl an art form.
But this first brush with fame made our favourite Swiss Great Uncle hungry for even more notoriety. He decided to climb the greasy pole of football administration by seeking ‘election’ to his presidential position all those years ago.
So what has Sepp done during his glorious tenure?
Thanks to Sepp we all know that racism is a very bad thing. All we need is to wave a yellow flag and the football fairy will make everything better. If Sepp stuck with this simple world view, we might have politely laughed it off and agreed to go along with it for a simple life.
The problem is that it seems that anybody who criticizes Sepp and the weird decision making he supervises is accused of racism. We raise questions on dodgy finance. Racism says Sepp. Can’t figure out how Qatar with it’s oil-rich football tradition ended up with a world cup? Sepp says any questions illustrate our deep-seated euro-centric racist views. No it doesn’t. By falling for Sepp’s logic, we actually forget what racism is. The sheer ugliness of it.
The really good news is Sepp’s world knows no boundaries. Literally. At the end of this week’s FIFA congress Sepp actually put forward the idea of an inter-galactic championship in years to come.. Go figure that one. Too much time on his hands. Too much cash in his pocket as he leaves Brazil with a few billion profit as the country figures out how to pay off the debt incurred to host Sepp’s party.
Sepp. I love the comedy gold you give us in the name of the glorious game but sometimes the reality you want us to believe is about as real as last night’s dodgy penalty.
