FIFA on right track toreform says Bernstein

FA chairman David Bernstein, one of the biggest critics of FIFA a year ago, has declared he is impressed with the path to reform of the world governing body but that much still needs to be done.

At last year’s FIFA Congress, Bernstein made a hard-hitting – if unsuccessful – speech calling for the FIFA presidential election to be postponed to allow a candidate to stand against Sepp Blatter.

Some 12 months later, Bernstein said the reforms implemented – and more importantly the proposals for change to be decided on in 2013 – have put FIFA on the right track.

He also echoed Swiss law professor Mark Pieth, the man appointed by FIFA to propose reforms, in insisting the organisation must not cherry-pick a few changes.

Bernstein, speaking after the FIFA Congress in Budapest, said: “I have always said the proof of the pudding would be in the eating but I must say I was very impressed today.

“I think the FA should take a little credit from having pushed this a year ago, we probably injected a little bit of urgency into the situation but we have got to be impressed.

“There is still much work to be done, and Pieth made it clear this is not a tree to pick cherries from, you have to embrace the whole package and we will see if that happens.

“Everything was so traumatic last year for FIFA that I really think they have seen the light, and today you can say there is every evidence of real intent.”

Pieth has proposed a number of reforms including limited terms of office and age limits for FIFA members, a public hotline for reporting allegations of corruption, and the salaries of leading FIFA figures to be made public. None of those reforms will be voted on by FIFA until next year’s Congress, however.

The only reforms passed at this Congress are splitting the ethics committee into an investigative arm and a sanctioning arm with independent chairmen, appointing a woman on to FIFA’s EXCO, Lydia Nsekera, and installing Domenico Scala as independent chairman of the new audit committee.

Pieth appealed to the Congress not just to pick out the reforms which suited them, saying: “Please abstain from cherry-picking out of this menu. I’m not saying you have to do everything, but these things are linked.”

Blatter, however, immediately responded, saying: “Even if Professor Pieth will say we shall not cherry-pick, we cannot take the whole tree.

“It is impossible to take the tree and take all the cherries down.”

But he added: “This is the first step, a very important one, and we will definitely take the second step at next year’s Congress.”

FIFA also confirmed they will put aside £48m to cover the cost of insuring players on international duty.