During his speech before the start of the FA Cup Final match yesterday, Prince William urged the sponsors and supporters of Fifa to reform the organisation.
The Prince, who is the president of the FA, called for Fifa to “show that it can represent the interests of fair play and put the sport first”.
During his speech at Wembley, Prince William encouraged that changes needed to be made in order to protect world football.
“There seems to be a huge disconnect between the sense of fair play that guides those playing and supporting the game, and the allegations of corruption that have long lingered around the management of the sport internationally,” he commented.
Fifa, which is the world football governing body, has been reported frequently in the press of late after Fifa’s president, Sepp Blatter, was re-elected to his position. This re-election has occurred whilst seven arrests and 14 charges have taken place in regards to bribery, money-laundering and racketeering among people linked to the football governing body.
Prince William compared the events at Zurich in the past week to the corruption crisis surrounding Salt Lake City when the state was vying to host the Winter Olympic Games for 2002, which in turn influenced the reform of the International Olympic Committee.
“The events in Zurich this week represent Fifa’s Salt Lake City moment, when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) went through a similar period of serious allegations.
“Fifa, like the IOC, must now show that it can represent the interests of fair play and put the sport first.”
The Prince went on to comment: “Those backing Fifa, such as sponsors and the regional confederations, must do their bit to press these reforms – we are doing football and its fans no favours if we do not.
“I have no doubt that when Fifa reforms, its mission to spread the benefits of the game to more people, especially those in developing countries, can only be enhanced.”
Before the Cup Final began, the Duke of Cambridge also showed his support for David Gill, the newly-elected Fifa vice-president and former Manchester United chief executive, who decided to quit his position at Fifa this week in protest against Sepp Blatter’s re-election.
The Duke said: “I know I join with all of you in commending David Gill for his decision to stand down from the ExCo (executive committee) and to lead by example by doing so.”
Speaking about the importance of preserving football and promoting a strong and fair governing body, William stated: “We must ensure that the quality and the richness of the game at the highest levels is shared more generously at the grassroots. We must ensure that home-grown talent is better nurtured, and we must continue to kick out racism for good from our game.
“I feel we need to ensure that we become the gold standard of sporting governance. A modern, transparent and inclusive organisation – representative of the broad and diverse society who play and love our game.
“Over the next few years, if we want credibly to influence the debate on reform in Fifa, we must continue to strive for excellence in our own organisation.
“It’s not easy to do so, but it is worth it – and, to that end, I commend the process you are on, and I’ll be watching it closely.”
After his speech, Prince William watched the FA Cup Final match, which resulted in Arsenal beating Aston Villa 4-0. The Prince then presented the runners-up with their medals at the of the game, before handing over the FA Cup to the Arsenal team.
Featured Photo Credit: World Bank Photo Collection
