FIFA Executive to study refereeing and ticketing
The FIFA Executive Committee is to take a closer look at issues especially including refereeing and match ticketing following the experience of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan.
Meeting in Tokyo, Japan, today before the FIFA World Cup Final, the Executive Committee under President Joseph S Blatter discussed at length various aspects of refereeing at the current competition. The debate centred mostly on the selection of referees as a group for the final competition, and also their selection match-by-match, as well as on possible means of improving refereeing standards in general.
The FIFA Referees Committee was asked to provide a report and the members were invited to submit their ideas on the matter to the FIFA General Secretariat by the end of July.
Similarly, the Committee reflected on the difficulties that had occurred at the start of the World Cup with regard to ticketing, and agreed to compile a comprehensive report after an investigation conducted on the initiative of the FIFA President. It was pointed out, however, that despite these initial difficulties, the overall attendance at the 64 matches will have been in the region of 94 per-cent capacity.
The Chairman of the FIFA Sports Medical Committee, Dr Michel d’Hooghe, (Belgium), stressed once again that all doping tests at all 62 matches in the competition to date had proved negative. He praised the cooperation of the team doctors and players undergoing the tests and said that the negative results should be stressed to young people and other footballers to show that doping is neither prevalent nor advantageous in football.
The Committee agreed formally to the appointment of Urs Linsi, Deputy General Secretary, as acting General Secretary.
Toward the end of September, the President will present a detailed concept for the future direction of the Federation.
Furthermore, the Committee agreed to the proposal of the FIFA President to grant the President of the Oceania Football Confederation the status as an observer in the FIFA Executive.
Looking ahead to next year’s FIFA competitions, the dates were set for the FIFA Confederations Cup as 18 to 19 June. The four national associations bidding to host the event - Australia, France, South Africa and the United States - have to submit their detailed candidatures by July 18, and the choice will be made by the Executive Committee at its meeting on September 23/24, 2002.
