The FIFA Task Force for the Good of the Game will officially start work tomorrow (Thursday, 17 November 2005) when the Working Group for Financial Matters convenes for the first time. The working group’s task will be to discuss and propose possible solutions to problems involving corruption, ownership of more than one football club by a single individual or organisation, betting in football, money-laundering and the flow of money during player transfers, developments in the transfer market and players’ agents.

The delegates who attended the 55th Ordinary FIFA Congress in Marrakech, Morocco, on 12 September unanimously approved FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter’s proposal to create the FIFA Task Force for the Good of the Game, which consists of three separate working groups to focus on politics and competitions as well as financial matters. Each working group is made up of a chairman, supported by a member of the FIFA Executive Committee, as well as further standing committee members representing all facets of football. External experts may also be called upon to help discuss issues during the working groups’ deliberations.

FIFA President Blatter believes it is time to act: “Football is prospering all around the world and is now more popular than ever. But success brings with it problems involving club ownership, government bodies’ attempts to interfere and a growing chasm between the rich and the poor, and we will now be able to tackle these issues more thoroughly.”

All three working groups will report to the FIFA President, who in turn will report to the FIFA Executive Committee and finally to the FIFA Congress. The working groups’ objective is to analyse the above-mentioned problem areas in order to be able to propose appropriate, detailed courses of action for approval by the FIFA Congress.

The Working Group for Financial Matters is chaired by Mathieu Sprengers, the president of the Dutch football association and the treasurer of UEFA, while Ricardo Terra Teixeira (Brazil) is the deputy chairman and FIFA Executive Committee representative. The other working group members are Gilberto Madail (Portuguese FA president), Philippe Piat (president of the international players’ union, FIFPro), Richard Scudamore (chief executive of the FA Premier League, but unable to attend tomorrow’s meeting), Joan Laporta (president of Barcelona FC), Roger Vanden Stock (vice-president of the Belgian FA and president of Anderlecht), FIFA General Secretary Urs Linsi, UEFA chief executive Lars-Christer Olsson and AFC general secretary Peter Velappan. Tomorrow’s meeting will also be attended by Julio Grondona (senior FIFA vice-president and chairman of the FIFA Finance Committee) and Dr Protógenes Pinheiro de Querioz, the Brazilian police officer who led the investigation into Brazilian referee Edilson Pereira de Carvalho’s attempts to manipulate football matches.

The Working Group for Competitions will hold its first meeting in Zurich on 30 November, with the Working Group for Political Matters to convene at a later date.

Further information from:

FIFA Media Department – Tel.: +41-43/222 7272 – Fax: +41-43/222 7373 – E-mail: media@fifa.org