In Zurich, CONCACAF Countries Prepare for FIFA Election Day

Jamaal Shabazz, the head coach of Guyana's national soccer team and a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago travelled to a Zurich hotel on Thursday, to give his support to his home country's delegation, as it deliberated reforms at the CONCACAF meeting a day ahead of FIFA's much-awaited Congress.

"The sport is not called administration, the sport is called football," Shabazz pleaded, as he waited for the 41 national members of the group comprising North and Central America and the Caribbean to endorse reforms.

After several CONCACAF officials were arrested last year, including its president, Jeffrey Webb, now under house arrest in the United States, Shabazz said the region's football federations were gathering "to rebuild trust for each other. There are a lot of fears and distrust after what happened over the past year."

The confederation unanimously adopted internal reforms at its meeting, including the separation of political and commercial decision-making, and announced that it would vote unanimously at Friday's FIFA congress to adopt measures proposed by the world football body's reforms committee.

CONCACAF was under pressure to act after Webb, a former president of the Cayman Islands Football Association, his replacement, Alfredo Hawit, and a previous regional chief, Jack Warner, as well as other officials, were charged with corruption and money laundering in a U.S. Department of Justice bribery case.

On Thursday, CONCACAF's legal advisor, Samir Gandhi explained that following last year's arrests, $9 million was found in a Cayman bank account under the name of CONCACAF Cayman, to which Webb was the signatory. The money had been inaccessible to the organization, until "compliance matters" were addressed, including changing the name of the signatories.

Some 18 fraudulent vendor contracts set by CONCACAF were terminated following arrests, Gandhi explained. The regional organization settled with a U.S. travel agency, Cartan Tours, that had been overcharging for services as part of a kickback scheme, in order to avoid excessive litigation costs.

With CONCACAF playing a central role in FIFA's corruption scandal, FIFA cut off funding to the group earlier this month. CONCACAF said it had not received $10 million it expected from the world organization. Jordanian presidential candidate Prince Ali Al Hussein was critical of the decision in a recent VICE Sports interview.

FIFA's wide-ranging corruption is widely believed to have been uncovered after Chuck Blazer, a New Yorker who became CONCACAF general secretary under Jack Warner, and was a FIFA executive committee member for 16 years, reached a plea deal with U.S. authorities. Blazer, who allegedly rented an apartment in the Trump Tower exclusively for his cats, pleaded guilty in 2013 to a 10-count charge including money laundering and income tax evasion and forfeited more than $1.9 million.

Warner meanwhile, was accused of having solicited and accepted bribes, including in exchange for votes on the hosting of the 1998 and 2010 World Cups.

After CONCACAF's meeting ended, Grenada's association president Cheney Joseph told VICE Sport how the scandal had personal repercussions.

"Some of these people who got indicted in this fiasco are people we knew personally. You make the assumption that the friends you chose are similar to you, but unfortunately that is sometimes not the case."

In addition to the other big issues to be decided at summit, member countries will vote on who will succeed FIFA's long-term president, Sepp Blatter, now banned from football. Eric Labrador, the president of Puerto Rico's football federation, shrugged away any notion that CONCACAF's closed-door meeting included the discussion of any of the candidates or how members will vote.

At past elections, regional federations commonly voted as groups, with members casting ballots to the same candidate. Since taking the presidency in 1998, Sepp Blatter has been re-elected five times, with little opposition.

"We are working today on our business," Labrador said. "We are in friendship, we are a very happy group. It's a good atmosphere," he added.

But the five candidates in the running were making it difficult to ignore tomorrow's presidential vote. One by one, they pressed past the throngs of journalists assembled in the hotel lobby, for last minute pitches.

Tokyo Sexwale, a South African businessman arrived first, followed by Jerôme Champagne, a former FIFA executive from France, Jordanian Prince Ali al Hussein, Bahraini Sheikh Salman Bin Al-Khalifa and Swiss candidate Gianni Infantino.

CAF, Africa's confederation, comprising 54 votes, announced last month that it would vote for Sheikh Salman, who appears to be a leading candidate, along with Infantino, who is secretary general of UEFA. Sheikh Salman also received block support Thursday from the East Asian Football Federation's nine members.

But speaking to VICE Sports, several CONCACAF members felt the group would vote independently.

Mexico's football chief, Decio de Maria Serrano, denied that his country would participate in a block vote, but refused to say which candidate his federation would support. Meanwhile Grenada's Joseph, explained that his country's football congress had voted to endorse Gianni Infantino.

Shabazz, the coach, explained that the crisis that affected so many of CONCACAF's members had also shaken the old system of block voting.

"People feel security in maintaining their independence."

The times of when "issues in the member associations were made by one man" were changing, he said. Federations are opening up the process to include consultation from stakeholders such as managers, coaches and fans.

"Social media has given people the right to speak on their affairs. So if that has happened, football must be no different."