Sepp Blatter's Shock Resignation Sparks New Race Toward FIFA's Brighter Future

How was it still a surprise? After years—decades, even—of waiting for this day to come, how did it still manage to creep up on us all so unexpectedly?

When Sepp Blatter won the FIFA presidential election on Friday, most assumed it guaranteed his presence at the helm of football's international governing body for another four years—or until an outside entity forced him out, whichever came first. Yet there the Swiss was on Tuesday, less than a week after his election success, announcing to a half-empty media room he was stepping down from the organisation that has been his life's work.

In a four-minute speech that was not followed by questions, Blatter said, per CNN:

"

I have been reflecting deeply about my presidency and about the forty years in which my life has been inextricably bound to FIFA and the great sport of football. I cherish FIFA more than anything and I want to do only what is best for FIFA and for football. I felt compelled to stand for re-election, as I believed that this was the best thing for the organization. That election is over but FIFA's challenges are not. FIFA needs a profound overhaul.

While I have a mandate from the membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football—the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as much as we all do at FIFA.

Therefore, I have decided to lay down my mandate at an extraordinary elective Congress. I will continue to exercise my functions as FIFA President until that election.

"

It was a resignation, even if the word was never explicitly spoken and the "extraordinary elective congress" Blatter now plans may not take place for another nine months. That is plenty of time for the famously Machiavellian operator to spin a new web of deceit, for whatever purpose he may yet have; but for now football's wider public can celebrate, finally able to see a real future that does not have Blatter at the game's helm.

"This is great news for football. It should have happened years ago," English Football Association Chairman Greg Dyke told the BBC. "...There has to be a root-and-branch investigation of FIFA. It has all got to be transparent in the future."

What sparked Blatter's shocking decision is still to be fully explored, though it seems highly likely a combination of factors played into his decision. On Tuesday, Press Association reporter Martyn Ziegler published a letter, signed by FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke, that seemed to be authorising the $10 million payment that had become central to the media investigation (and, one presumes, also the FBI probe) into FIFA's methods.

Valcke, a man inextricably linked to Blatter, seemed to have been left with no wiggle room on the issue, with reports emerging later in the day that he would not be attending the Women's World Cup in Canada "due to the current situation."

Valcke was suddenly on the hook, yet few would swallow any attempt to suggest he acted of his own volition. Suddenly the net was pulling closer to Blatter, with Josh Margolin and Susanna Kim of ABC (via Good Morning America) also reporting that Blatter was on the radar in the FBI's expanding investigation.

"Now that people are going to want to save themselves, there's probably a race to see who will flip on [Blatter] first," a source said, referring to arrests already made.

One source added: "We may not be able to collapse the whole organisation but maybe you don't need to." 

There was further rumour and counter-rumour in Zurich, with speculation that Blatter had spent the days following his re-election (which was so poorly received around the world) taking meetings from various parties concerned that he had become too toxic for an organisation teetering on the brink. Such claims are hard to substantiate, but it is certainly interesting to note how many of FIFA's main sponsors responded quickly and enthusiastically to his decision to step down on Tuesday.

If those sponsors had made such feelings known prior to Blatter's departure, perhaps hinting at a boycott of their own, that may well have given him serious food for thought. The colour of money has long seemed to define FIFA's approach, after all.

"We respect Mr. Blatter's decision," Coca-Cola said in a statement (one echoed in sentiment by Adidas). "The announcement today is a positive step for the good of sport, football and its fans.

"Our expectation remains that FIFA will continue to act with urgency to take concrete actions to fully address all of the issues that have been raised and win back the trust of all who love the sport of football. We believe this decision will help FIFA transform itself rapidly into a much-needed 21st century structure and institution." 

It remains to be seen how that transformation will take place. It is worth stressing that Blatter has not departed yet, that he will be around until at least December (when the next election may first take place) and in the meantime will, in his own words, focus on "driving far-reaching, fundamental reforms that transcend our previous efforts."

Given Blatter's track record, it is not unfair if we do not take him at his words. Reform may be one motive, but another might well be to protect his own skin as much as possible from the charges that might soon be coming his way.

It seems safe to assume he is resigning in part at least to try to take the heat off him, either by diminishing himself as a target or by carefully stage-managing the terms of his walk into the sunset.

After decades of disappointment, however, perhaps we are all allowed a little time to celebrate impending change and wonder who might now succeed Blatter and bring FIFA toward the light.

Prince Ali Bin al-Hussein, the man Blatter beat in Friday's election, may now be the favourite to become FIFA's next president, especially as we know he already has the support of around one-third of the FIFA Congress. UEFA delegates Michel Platini and Michael van Praag may also run, though it is hard to believe either man will get the votes required from Blatter's traditional fanbase if there is not an overhaul of the rank and file as well prior to the next election.

Former professional player David Ginola has already thrown his hat back into the ring, though his campaign was laughed out of town the first time around and figures to suffer a similar fate this time. Another ex-player, Luis Figo, might have a better chance, untarnished as he is by the ways of the old system.

That too plays into the hands of FIFA vice president David Gill and U.S. delegate Sunil Gulati, both of whom campaigned loudly and publicly against Blatter prior to his downfall. (Gill, who pledged to resign his vice presidency even before he received it if Blatter was re-elected, looks particularly good.) If FIFA reacts to the mistakes of the past by swinging violently in the opposite direction, Gill or Gulati could be well positioned to prosper.

The same goes too for the possibility of the 2022 World Cup taking place in the United States or England. While it is surely too late to strip Russia of the 2018 World Cup, once Blatter departs, the 2022 tournament in Qatar will surely become a hot topic of discussion again.

Philipp Schmidli/Getty Images

There are other candidates, though. Indeed, the likelihood is that the next president will emerge from an unexpected source within the next few months.

It should also be presumed that Blatter will look to surreptitiously help the candidacy of an individual who could then implement policies that aid him (in avoiding prosecution or recriminations) and his legacy once he no longer wields power himself. Friday's election shows Blatter retains significant support, so that eventuality should not be dismissed entirely.

And that is perhaps where we return to the next matter at hand: Blatter may be on the way out, but the 133 delegates who voted for him last week remain in place, and with it the culture the Swiss has helped cultivate over the last two decades. Those delegates now need to be weeded out, too, the ones who also dirtied themselves in recent years identified and dismissed so the completely clean break the organisation needs can finally be made.

Blatter's announcement on Tuesday was a delightful surprise, even if years of misdirection have taught us all to be wary of his underlying motives. Nevertheless, it seems the prospect of real change is finally at hand. Now those who have previously talked a good game must start to prove it with actions and finally move on from old, malignant practices by aggressively pursuing the cleaner, more transparent future that may now be (almost) at hand.