FIFA president Sepp Blatter wins re-election
As expected, FIFA president Sepp Blatter cruised to re-election today, despite allegations that he presided over a culture of corruption that reached the top levels of soccer's global governing organization. Thought to be buoyed by support from African, Asian, and South American countries, Blatter beat his challenger Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan 133 nations to 73 (three ballots were invalid). The vote was held only miles from the Swiss hotel where many of his lieutenants were arrested on corruption charges Wednesday.
"I will accept this responsibility and I want to fix FIFA together with you," Blatter, 79, told the voting body Friday just before he was elected to his fifth term. "I want to do it now and tomorrow and the day after and the weeks and months to come so that at the end of my term of office, I will be able to hand over a solid FIFA, a FIFA that will have emerged from the storm."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The 8 best hospital dramas of all timethe week recommends From wartime period pieces to of-the-moment procedurals, audiences never tire of watching doctors and nurses do their lifesaving thing
-
‘Implementing strengthened provisions help advance aviation safety’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
How Manchesterism could change the UKThe Explainer The idea involves shifting a centralized government to more local powers
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
-
Trump says US ‘in charge’ of Venezuela after Maduro grabSpeed Read The American president claims the US will ‘run’ Venezuela for an unspecified amount of time, contradicting a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
