Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss? FIFA turns to Swiss Infantino

In the end, it will be another Swiss succeeding Sepp Blatter as President of FIFA. Nine months after soccer's world governing body became entangled in a vast corruption scandal, it elected Gianni Infantino, UEFA's secretary general, to lead the sport forward.

Infantino, a close associate of the European federation's former chief Michel Platini, was born in Brig, just 10 kilometers from Sepp Blatter's hometown of Visp.

Prior to Friday's election—which also saw the adoption by the 207 national federations of wide-ranging reforms for the organization— there were concerns that most of the presidential candidates would bring few changes to the embattled organization.

But as usual, politics were involved in the high stakes vote for only the ninth president of the Zurich-based organization, established 112 years ago. Block voting from regional confederations, long practiced in the organization was feared, as were delegates who may have sought encouragement to vote in one of the candidates' favor.

With the exception of the Brazilian Joao Havelange, Blatter's predecessor, all of the organization's presidents have been European. But in contrast, three of the five candidates that had been running during most of the race were not.

Many felt relief when the predicted favorite, Bahraini Sheikh Salman Bin Al-Khalifa, failed to get enough support in the second round of balloting, after some delegates recast their votes strategically.

The United States' soccer federation president, Sunil Gulati was one of those, admitting that his second round vote went to Infantino, after he saw that Jordanian Prince Ali al Hussein, the most forceful reformer of the five candidates, would not have enough votes to win.

Outside the Hallenstadion conference center, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei rejoiced at not seeing the win going to Sheikh Salman, who was believed to have had the backing of much of the CAF, Africa's confederation, which offered the greatest number of votes of the six regional groups.

Alwadaei, a Bahraini democracy advocate, was sentenced to a six-month prison term by military court and subject to torture after participating in protests against the country's regime. He then fled his country, fearing for his own security.

"It would be a declaration for FIFA that they had collapsed morally, that they are committing an institutional suicide," he had said earlier on Friday. "What FIFA needs the last after recovering from corruption scandals that now they are adding to their profile human rights abuses and torture."

Sheikh Salman, he said, was complicit in identifying and sanctioning footballers and other athletes who participated in pro-democracy protests, before they were tortured.

The Bahraini sheikh's lawyers have said those accusations are false.

In January, Jordanian football association president Prince Ali — who ran last year against Blatter — warned that FIFA would face a "catastrophe" if he was not elected.

At least one CONCACAF member, the president of Guadeloupe's association, Joseph Séné, suggested to VICE Sports that under the new president, a few of the old boys may remain in power.

Infantino, he said, "will certainly make changes and bring a few reforms, and restart the engine. There will certainly be a few of the old pack, but things will get better."

At a brief press conference, Infantino thanked Michel Platini, who was his boss at UEFA before being banned from football after he allegedly accepted a $2 million payment from Blatter. Platini had withdrawn his own bid for the FIFA presidency in January.

"I have strong thoughts for Michel Platini at this time," Infantino said.

FIFA's new president campaigned on the promise to increase funding to national associations, and as an experienced international football official, fluent in Italian, English, German, French and Spanish.

But on Friday, shortly before Infantino's win, FIFA's acting secretary general, Markus Kattner reminded delegates that FIFA's finances were in trouble, and that cost-cutting will be required.

A day earlier, several CONCACAF representatives told VICE Sports that Infantino showed an authentic interest in promoting the sport and in supporting of grassroots activities.

"I will show that I am not a candidate of Europe or whatever, but I am a candidate of football, and football is universal," the Swiss promised after the vote.

As delegates trickled out of the hall Friday evening, a member of the Russian federation said he was pleased with Infantino's win,—a "European candidate."

When asked by VICE Sports about concerns over the attribution of the 2018 World Cup to Russia, which along with the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, have become central to the U.S. and Swiss FIFA investigations, he said, "In our eyes, these investigations are effectively over. All the enquiries to us were long over, when FIFA investigation conducted proper procedure."

Reforms ahead

Belgium's federation president, François de Keersmaecker, was also pleased with the vote's result. Infantino, he said, is "the best guarantee to have some reforms in FIFA… the right man in the right place."

Roland Buechel, a Swiss parliamentarian and promoter of a recently adopted law also known Lex FIFA, who was also at the Hallenstadion to follow events, warned that Infantino will now "have to prove that he will be able to enforce the reforms. That's the most important thing to do."

Through the new Swiss laws, private corruption in the many Swiss-based international sports organizations has become a crime— and sports officials are now considered as politically exposed persons, or PEPs.

François Carrard, chairman of FIFA's reforms committee and formerly responsible for proposing changes at the International Olympic Committee in the wake of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics corruption scandal, said FIFA's reforms, which were overwhelmingly adopted Friday, "must not be considered the end of a process, but rather the beginning of a reform process to be built on in the future."

The adapted reforms include a separation of politics from business with a new governing body, called the FIFA Council, term limits for officials to three consecutive terms of four years, eligibility tests, obligation to disclose compensation, as well as a respect for human rights.

Among the other goals of the reform, Carrard said, was to increase the participation of women. He noted that the number of women on FIFA's 36-person executive committee had been multiplied six-fold—"from one to six!"

Last year, FIFA disowned comments Carrard made to a Swiss newspaper. American soccer was "just an ethnic sport for girls in schools," Carrard told Le Matin.

Carrard's nomination to the reform committee came shortly after last spring's arrest of FIFA officials at a luxury Zurich hotel prompted U.S. and Swiss authorities to widen their investigations into corruption at FIFA.

Meanwhile, former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, whose six-year ban from football (a result of those investigations) kept him away from the organization's congressional meeting, welcomed Infantino:

"With his experience, expertise, strategic and diplomatic skills he has all the qualities to continue my work and stabilize FIFA once more," he said. "I wish him good luck and success."

He told German television ZDF that he "had gluhwein (mulled wine) with (Infantino) around Christmas and gave him tips."

But the disgraced leader was barely mentioned at this "extraordinary congress", which had been called, as a result of the scandal, less than a year after Blatter's fifth, yet short-lived, re-election.

Only Carrard, who shortly after being nominated to head the reform committee, seemed interested in talking about Blatter. He said that criticism of Blatter was unfair, and on Friday expressed thanks to the Blatter for the support that he and other FIFA officials gave to the work of the reform committee, which had to be completed within a "very short" time.

"Thanks to them, under difficult situations, the reform committee was able to work diligently and constantly, and in full independence."