Popularity and fame could easily drive someone to commit serious mistakes in life in a bid to earn more personal prestige. There were several who lost their way and were lost without a trace... but not Joe Caruana Curran.

Coming from a truly respected family in our society and a former president of the Federation of Industries, the 46-year-old businessman has probably already seen it all despite his relatively young age.

The man is held in high esteem wherever he goes. Valletta FC's exploits during his 18-year helm at the club are still regarded as unmatchable. No small wonder then that the football folk still consider 'is-Sur Joe' as a great personality and a symbol of his team's remarkable achievements, particularly in the 90s.

Why, then one might ask, should the former Valletta FC supremo break a year's sabbatical from sports administration and face the arduous task of dislodging Dr Joe Mifsud from his seat in Saturday's election for Malta FA president?

Sounds difficult to find an answer at first. Dr Mifsud has been occupying the top job for 12 years. He was never contested and escaped unscathed from difficult situations, including a vote of confidence in 2000.

Caruana Curran, however, is quick with his reply.

"It's the love I have for the game and the interest in our clubs, first and foremost," he said. "I'm not after personal glory.

"I feel the Malta FA requires a new impetus, a drastic change of direction as well as a new approach and a fresh outlook in all matters, without exception."

Caruana Curran was speaking at the Kennedy Nova Hotel where he discussed the salient points of a document presented to the media ahead of Saturday's election.

He felt there was no spirit of 'Fair Play' in the contest as he will not be able to address council members during the AGM.

"The only way I had to pass my message to delegates was to meet all club committees in a matter of days," he said. "In a way, it was useful though because I had a good opportunity to discuss matters with those who are truly involved in football administration.

"I consider our clubs to be the main shareholders in the association. Most of them feel their contribution is not appreciated enough and they all face an identical problem, mainly a shortage in finances.

"It's a common occurrence... clubs are facing times of uncertainty. Most depend on a few individuals to guarantee payments. Obviously, the need for more funds is stronger in the Premier League but if you put things into perspective it's the same from top to bottom.

"Surely, that's not an ideal scenario for our football to survive."

Caruana Curran said all clubs have to play a bigger role in promoting the game and perhaps lure back the thousands of spectators who have turned their backs on the no.1 sport on the island.

"I guess, too much resources are spent on the national team and clubs have little say in this," he argued. "Despite the investment, Malta still plays in front of bare terraces and results are poor... far from an ideal situation, isn't it?

"If I'm elected, I will see that more discussions are held. In my opinion, we need to strengthen our clubs first before focusing totally on the national team. But, in order to achieve progress there needs to be an all-round participation, not least from the clubs."

Caruana Curran does not intend to run the show all by himself and emphasised on decentralisation of power and transparency.

"We cannot continue to abide by a situation where everything is centred around one or two individuals," he remarked.

"Various responsibilities within the MFA need to be re-assigned. A chief executive will be employed on a professional basis to look after the day-to-day running of the MFA.

"Also details, especially financial ones, relevant to any and all of the MFA's operations must be made available to the members of the Council and Executive Committee. Transparency in all matters should be considered sacrosanct."

If he becomes the next president of the association, Caruana Curran will not hang on to his seat at all costs.

"I pledge to hold an approval poll before each annual meeting, requesting members to approve, or otherwise, the work carried out the previous year," he said.

"Should there not be a minimum 70% approval rating on the three consecutive years of the presidency, I declare beforehand that I will not seek re-election following the expiry of my term."

Lack of sponsorships

According to Caruana Curran, the association's financial situation is not as rosy as some might indicate. There are no sponsors and that means less income for clubs.

"The costs at the National Stadium's Millennium Stand, for instance, had soared beyond control. The project is not finished yet and so far it has cost the association around Lm3.8 million," he said. "With our clubs striving to survive I see better ways how that money could have been spent.

"At present, the association has no financial partners. It seems that some firms are opting for different quarters to seek promotion. At this stage, I've already held talks with some potential sponsors. No agreements were reached but they could be interested if there's a change in administration but not as things stand at present."

Here, Caruana Curran vowed that should he get the hot seat on Saturday he would immediately revise all TV-rights contracts that currently exist and see that more money is pumped directly into the clubs.

He will seek to add more responsibilities to the various boards and Standing Committees in all divisions and revealed that he was ready to give up on the president's annual honorarium, which he calculates between Lm12,000 and Lm15,000.

"That money will go directly to clubs in the Second and Third Divisions - 29 in all. They will get Lm500 each for the next three years - that's guaranteed," he promised.

"True, it's a small income in comparison with what they really need to break even but at least it shows that voluntary work and participation are being acknowledged. Delegates showing interest in obtaining more knowledge on football administration abroad will get the MFA's assistance."

Caruana Curran said he was no person to hold a grudge against someone and was ready to work with the other members of the executive, all uncontested, if delegates back him with their vote.

He has already designed new responsibilities for vice-presidents, varying from youth policy programmes to the national team, and will also seek to work more closely with the authorities in his bid to upgrade the level of our football.

"It seems that our youths fail to maintain an early promise once they've reached a certain age. This has been going on for years, but now it's time we seek proper advice, even from FIFA and UEFA, to halt the negative trend and for us to produce better players," he said.

At present, the issue of foreign players is one of the hot topics after the MFA's introduction of a new rule saying no more than three should be on the field of play at the same time.

Caruana Curran was careful to choose his words and explain his position.

"Honestly, I have mixed feelings about all this. However, I am no rebel and always seek to abide by the law," he said.

"True, an influx of foreigners could hamper Maltese players. But, if you look from a different angle it might also mean that more talented players will filter into lower divisions and that alone could mean that automatically the standard in our leagues will improve.

"We have to see what others did after the EU rules were introduced. This is not something we are going to face all by ourselves. But, primarily, we have to find solutions which suit best our clubs and then the national team."