FOOTBALL NEWS
Ayew, Gyan shortlisted for BBC award
Ayew, Gyan shortlisted for BBC award
16 November 2010
The five candidates for the 2010 BBC African Footballer of the Year award have been revealed on the BBC's African sports programme Fast Track. Ghana pair Asamoah Gyan and Andre 'Dede' Ayew, Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o, and Yaya Toure and Didier Drogba of Ivory Coast are included on the list. The winner will be decided by African football fans, who have until 10 December to vote for their choice.
Voting for the award will take place via text and online.
The winner will be announced a week later on 17 December on the BBC's African sports programme Fast Track.
Both Sunderland striker Gyan and Marseille midfielder Ayew starred for Ghana as they reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time. The 29-year-old forward Eto'o played a vital role as his Italian side Inter Milan won the Champions League and a domestic double.
English Premier League side Chelsea secured the a league and cup double for the first time in their history, thanks in part to the goals of 32-year-old striker Drogba.
While, Toure, 27, became the highest-paid footballer in English football following the midfielder's move from Barcelona to Manchester City. The shortlist was determined by a panel of experts across Africa who took into consideration individual skill, technical ability, teamwork, consistency, impact on results and fair play.
"It has been a significant year for African football, with the World Cup being hosted in the continent for the first time and Angola hosting the Africa Cup of Nations," said BBC Fast Track presenter Farayi Mungazi. "A youthful Ghana side lit up the World Cup so it is great to see the Black Stars duo of Asamoah Gyan and Dede Ayew receive their first nominations as well as the ever classy Eto'o, Drogba and Yaya Toure." Last year's winner was Drogba of Chelsea and Ivory Coast after his consistent form and goals for club and country.
Previous winners of BBC African Footballer of the Year award:
2009 - Didier Drogba (Chelsea & Ivory Coast) 2008 - Mohamed Aboutrika (Al Ahly & Egypt) 2007 - Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal & Togo) 2006 - Michael Essien (Chelsea & Ghana) 2005 - Mohamed Barakat (Al Ahly & Egypt) 2004 - Jay Jay Okocha (Bolton & Nigeria) 2003 - Jay Jay Okocha (Bolton & Nigeria) 2002 - El Hadji Diouf (Liverpool & Ghana) 2001 - Sammy Kuffour (Bayern Munich & Ghana) 2000 - Patrick Mboma (Parma & Cameroon)
Four other FIFA officials were banned and fined, including Slim Aloulou, chairman of the FIFA committee that settles disputes between clubs, players and coaches.
FIFA said all had violated ethics codes.
However, a further claim from a British newspaper that some bidding countries were guilty of collusion before the Dec. 2 vote in Zurich was dismissed by the sport's governing body's ethics committee.
The decision means that only 22 executive committee members, instead of the expected 24, will vote on Dec. 2 when FIFA chooses the hosts for the two tournaments.
"For as long as I am in the ethics committee, we will have a zero tolerance policy for all violations of standards," said ethics committee chairman Claudio Sulser after a three-day hearing.
"We don't want cheaters, we don't want doping, we don't want abuses to be accepted."
Adamu and Tahiti had been provisionally suspended following allegations by The Sunday Times that they offered to sell their votes to undercover reporters posing as lobbyists for an American consortium.
The allegations have cast a shadow over the race to host the two World Cup tournaments.
Russia and England are bidding to host the 2018 World Cup along with joint bids from Spain/Portugal and Belgium/Netherlands. Japan, South Korea, Australia, United States and Qatar are candidates for 2022.
FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke confirmed that the vote would go ahead with two executive committee members short and said there was almost no chance of changing the controversial decision to choose the two hosts in the same vote.
"Yes, there will be only 22 members for the 2018 and 2022 votes," he said. "I definitely think, as the FIFA president (Sepp Blatter) said, the game has started and you don't change the rules after the game has started."
"It's 99 percent certain the executive committee will not spilt the 2018 and 2022 decisions, as was decided from day one."
Tunisia's Aloulou -- the chairman of FIFA's dispute resolution chamber and a member of the players' status committee -- was banned for two years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs.
Ahongalu Fusimalohi, general secretary of the Tonga FA, and Amadou Diakite from Mali, a member of the FIFA referees' committee, were banned for three years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs each.
Botswana's Ismael Bhamjee, an honorary member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), was banned for four years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs.
Voting for the award will take place via text and online.
The winner will be announced a week later on 17 December on the BBC's African sports programme Fast Track.
Both Sunderland striker Gyan and Marseille midfielder Ayew starred for Ghana as they reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time. The 29-year-old forward Eto'o played a vital role as his Italian side Inter Milan won the Champions League and a domestic double.
English Premier League side Chelsea secured the a league and cup double for the first time in their history, thanks in part to the goals of 32-year-old striker Drogba.
While, Toure, 27, became the highest-paid footballer in English football following the midfielder's move from Barcelona to Manchester City. The shortlist was determined by a panel of experts across Africa who took into consideration individual skill, technical ability, teamwork, consistency, impact on results and fair play.
"It has been a significant year for African football, with the World Cup being hosted in the continent for the first time and Angola hosting the Africa Cup of Nations," said BBC Fast Track presenter Farayi Mungazi. "A youthful Ghana side lit up the World Cup so it is great to see the Black Stars duo of Asamoah Gyan and Dede Ayew receive their first nominations as well as the ever classy Eto'o, Drogba and Yaya Toure." Last year's winner was Drogba of Chelsea and Ivory Coast after his consistent form and goals for club and country.
Previous winners of BBC African Footballer of the Year award:
2009 - Didier Drogba (Chelsea & Ivory Coast) 2008 - Mohamed Aboutrika (Al Ahly & Egypt) 2007 - Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal & Togo) 2006 - Michael Essien (Chelsea & Ghana) 2005 - Mohamed Barakat (Al Ahly & Egypt) 2004 - Jay Jay Okocha (Bolton & Nigeria) 2003 - Jay Jay Okocha (Bolton & Nigeria) 2002 - El Hadji Diouf (Liverpool & Ghana) 2001 - Sammy Kuffour (Bayern Munich & Ghana) 2000 - Patrick Mboma (Parma & Cameroon)
FIFA bans, fines two executive committee members
Zurich: Two FIFA executive committee members were banned and fined on Thursday following an investigation into allegations they had offered to sell their votes in the contest to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
Nigerian Amos Adamu was banned from all-soccer related activities for three years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs (USD 10,130) while Reynald Temarii of Tahiti was banned for one year and fined 5,000 Swiss francs.
FIFA said all had violated ethics codes.
However, a further claim from a British newspaper that some bidding countries were guilty of collusion before the Dec. 2 vote in Zurich was dismissed by the sport's governing body's ethics committee.
The decision means that only 22 executive committee members, instead of the expected 24, will vote on Dec. 2 when FIFA chooses the hosts for the two tournaments.
"For as long as I am in the ethics committee, we will have a zero tolerance policy for all violations of standards," said ethics committee chairman Claudio Sulser after a three-day hearing.
"We don't want cheaters, we don't want doping, we don't want abuses to be accepted."
Adamu and Tahiti had been provisionally suspended following allegations by The Sunday Times that they offered to sell their votes to undercover reporters posing as lobbyists for an American consortium.
The allegations have cast a shadow over the race to host the two World Cup tournaments.
Russia and England are bidding to host the 2018 World Cup along with joint bids from Spain/Portugal and Belgium/Netherlands. Japan, South Korea, Australia, United States and Qatar are candidates for 2022.
FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke confirmed that the vote would go ahead with two executive committee members short and said there was almost no chance of changing the controversial decision to choose the two hosts in the same vote.
"Yes, there will be only 22 members for the 2018 and 2022 votes," he said. "I definitely think, as the FIFA president (Sepp Blatter) said, the game has started and you don't change the rules after the game has started."
"It's 99 percent certain the executive committee will not spilt the 2018 and 2022 decisions, as was decided from day one."
Tunisia's Aloulou -- the chairman of FIFA's dispute resolution chamber and a member of the players' status committee -- was banned for two years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs.
Ahongalu Fusimalohi, general secretary of the Tonga FA, and Amadou Diakite from Mali, a member of the FIFA referees' committee, were banned for three years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs each.
Botswana's Ismael Bhamjee, an honorary member of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), was banned for four years and fined 10,000 Swiss francs.
The race to host the World Cup in 2018 and 2022 30 November 2010
On Thursday in Zurich, football's world governing body Fifa will
announce the countries it has chosen to host the World Cup in 2018 and
2022.
There are four bids on the table for the 2018 World Cup, with England hopeful of beating Spain/Portugal, Netherlands/Belgium and Russia for the right to host the competition for the first time since 1966.
Five bidders are vying for the 2022 tournament: Japan, Australia, United States of America, South Korea and Qatar.
Here is our guide to the contenders for both editions, starting with the four bids for 2018:
But Blatter, apparently joking, said: "I would say they should refrain from any sexual activities."
On a more serious note, Blatter added: "I'm sure when the World Cup will be in Qatar there will be no problems."
However, former NBA star John Amaechi, who revealed that he was gay in 2007, was highly critical of Blatter's comments.
The Islamic country of Qatar was the surprise winner of the race to host the 2022 World Cup, beating Australia, Japan, South Korea and the United States when the 22-man Fifa executive committee voted in their favour in Zurich on 2 December.
Fifa has since come in for criticism after the decision to take the World Cup to the Middle East for the first time.
Concerns were raised about hosting the tournament during the summer months in a country where temperatures can reach 40C to 50C while current laws mean drinking alcohol in public is forbidden.
Gay groups are also worried about the acceptance of homosexual fans, with the Gay Football Supporter's Network saying at the time of Fifa's decision: "We strongly condemn Fifa's decision and will be leading a LGBT [Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay and Transgender] boycott of all activities associated with World Cup 2022.
"We do not feel the World Cup should be held in any country that abuses and disregards the basic human rights of LGBT people."
But Blatter does not foresee any difficulties, saying: "You see in the Middle East the opening of this culture, it's another culture because it's another religion, but in football we have no boundaries.
"We open everything to everybody and I think there shall not be any discrimination against any human beings be it on this side or that side, be it left, right or whatever.
"If they want to watch a match somewhere in Qatar 2022, I'm sure they will be admitted to such matches."
Blatter says even if there are problems, there is still plenty of time to sort out any issues.
"I think there is too much concern for a competition that will be done only in 12 years," he added.
"But this gives me the opportunity to say that in Fifa, and this is in the statutes of Fifa, whether it is in politics, whether it is in religion, we don't want racism, and we know what this means, and neither do we want discrimination.
"What we want is just to open this game to everybody and open it to all cultures and this is what we are doing in 2022."
But Amaechi did not see the funny side of Blatter's "refrain
from any sexual activities" comments, telling his
official
website:
"The statements and the position adopted by Sepp Blatter and Fifa
regarding LGBT fans who would pay the enormous ticket and travel prices
to attend the World Cup in 2022 should have been wholly unacceptable a
decade ago.
"Instead, with little more than an afterthought Fifa has endorsed the marginalisation of LGBT people around the world.
"Anything less than a full reversal of his position is unacceptable and if the FA and football and sporting associations around the world fail to acknowledge this insult, they too will be complicit.
"If sport can not serve to change society, even temporarily during the duration of an event like the World Cup that invites the world to participate, then it is little more than grown men chasing a ball and we should treat it as such."
Blatter, who was visiting South Africa - the hosts of the 2010 tournament, insisted money had no part in taking the competition to new parts of the world.
Russia won the right to host the 2018 competition.
"This is development of football and don't speak about money," said Blatter.
"This has nothing to do with money as it had nothing to [do with it] with Africa.
"It is the development of the game. We have to take to places where it can improve and have a social and cultural impact. And it's what we did here in Africa."
There are four bids on the table for the 2018 World Cup, with England hopeful of beating Spain/Portugal, Netherlands/Belgium and Russia for the right to host the competition for the first time since 1966.
Five bidders are vying for the 2022 tournament: Japan, Australia, United States of America, South Korea and Qatar.
Here is our guide to the contenders for both editions, starting with the four bids for 2018:
Fifa boss Sepp Blatter laughs off Qatar 2022 gay fears 14 December 2010
Fifa president Sepp Blatter has tried to laugh off
suggestions that the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will not be open to gay
football fans.
Gay rights groups have criticised the decision
to award the tournament to a country where homosexuality is illegal. But Blatter, apparently joking, said: "I would say they should refrain from any sexual activities."
On a more serious note, Blatter added: "I'm sure when the World Cup will be in Qatar there will be no problems."
However, former NBA star John Amaechi, who revealed that he was gay in 2007, was highly critical of Blatter's comments.
The Islamic country of Qatar was the surprise winner of the race to host the 2022 World Cup, beating Australia, Japan, South Korea and the United States when the 22-man Fifa executive committee voted in their favour in Zurich on 2 December.
Fifa has since come in for criticism after the decision to take the World Cup to the Middle East for the first time.
Concerns were raised about hosting the tournament during the summer months in a country where temperatures can reach 40C to 50C while current laws mean drinking alcohol in public is forbidden.
Gay groups are also worried about the acceptance of homosexual fans, with the Gay Football Supporter's Network saying at the time of Fifa's decision: "We strongly condemn Fifa's decision and will be leading a LGBT [Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay and Transgender] boycott of all activities associated with World Cup 2022.
"We do not feel the World Cup should be held in any country that abuses and disregards the basic human rights of LGBT people."
But Blatter does not foresee any difficulties, saying: "You see in the Middle East the opening of this culture, it's another culture because it's another religion, but in football we have no boundaries.
"We open everything to everybody and I think there shall not be any discrimination against any human beings be it on this side or that side, be it left, right or whatever.
"If they want to watch a match somewhere in Qatar 2022, I'm sure they will be admitted to such matches."
Blatter says even if there are problems, there is still plenty of time to sort out any issues.
"I think there is too much concern for a competition that will be done only in 12 years," he added.
"But this gives me the opportunity to say that in Fifa, and this is in the statutes of Fifa, whether it is in politics, whether it is in religion, we don't want racism, and we know what this means, and neither do we want discrimination.
"What we want is just to open this game to everybody and open it to all cultures and this is what we are doing in 2022."
Amaechi was the first NBA star to reveal that he
was gay
|
"Instead, with little more than an afterthought Fifa has endorsed the marginalisation of LGBT people around the world.
"Anything less than a full reversal of his position is unacceptable and if the FA and football and sporting associations around the world fail to acknowledge this insult, they too will be complicit.
"If sport can not serve to change society, even temporarily during the duration of an event like the World Cup that invites the world to participate, then it is little more than grown men chasing a ball and we should treat it as such."
Blatter, who was visiting South Africa - the hosts of the 2010 tournament, insisted money had no part in taking the competition to new parts of the world.
Russia won the right to host the 2018 competition.
"This is development of football and don't speak about money," said Blatter.
"This has nothing to do with money as it had nothing to [do with it] with Africa.
"It is the development of the game. We have to take to places where it can improve and have a social and cultural impact. And it's what we did here in Africa."