BLOG: Blatter's rear-ended view makes a mockery of the sport...

leggo

Just did this blog up for my show's FB page. Hope you guy's enjoy it and it gets some discussion going.

Who else is slightly ashamed to be a football fan today?

Without question, it's the most popular, followed and beloved sport in the world. It unites all classes, races and divides. Its rabid, passionate fans are among the world's finest and do Bob Paisley's classic 'life or death' testament of the sport proud.

And yet we're contantly forced to settle for less.

Enter Sepp Blatter.

For those living under a rock, Blatter is FIFA President and has held this role since 1998. He is basically the man charged with undertaking all of the sport's biggest decisions. The man we rely on to move the beautiful game forward.

Speaking of 'The Beautiful Game', I was lucky enough to be in-studio for my colleague Dan Pitcher's show of the same name last night listening to an interview with veteran Sportspeak.eu journalist, Bob MacKenzie. It was a great interview, where I disagreed with a good 60% of what Bob said, but admired his balls to say it anyway. If they get it online at some stage, I'll hook you guys up with a link.

Much of the above interview was centred around Blatter's eccentricities and the likelihood of him being re-elected with his corrupt, mafioso-style gang behind him. It made me sad that it was one of the points raised in the interview that I did agree on...and it was one of the points I would've been delighted to disagree on.

Take his Vice-President and running buddy, Jack Warner, for example. Time and again he's been proven of being involved in corruption scandals (be it from selling black market tickets to embezzling Trinidad & Tobago's international funds)...but yet he still remains in his position and nothing will change until 2011. And beyond if he's re-elected (which is likely).

In an apparently democratic world, how such a blatantly corrupt individual can remain atop of the world's largest sport without an eyelid batted? How can the leader of this sport stand proudly beside a man who could, very likely, be in prison if he wasn't so powerful...and not fear repurcussions in the slightest?

When you look at the sport from that perspective, it's easy to understand how the likes of Serie A and (most recently) even the Champions League and Europa League can be so vulnerable to the likes of match-fixing and betting scandals.

When you look at the sport from that perspective, it's remarkable that a minnow like Ireland even dared to dream of going to South Africa in 2010 when such influential forces were clearly pulling against us.

Then the screw came in. FIFA decided to collectively bend us over and **** us in the arse. Then laugh at us for having the cheek to feel hard done by.

The same FIFA who refuses to even discuss video technology. Despite it being successful in pretty much every other major sport where it would be considered useful.

This isn't even up for debate as far as I'm concerned. The fact is that football is a business worth MILLIONS these days. Had Ireland made it to South Africa...it would have possibly given our entire economy the kick up the arse it needed to get into recovery mode.

And we leave these major decisions to human error?

Thanks to Blatter and co, the world's most popular sport now lags behind several others.

As a fan, I have to say it's crossed my mind several times this month, whether this backwards sport that is dying on its feet is even worth the devotion and passion that I put into it.

At best, right now I feel embarrassed for caring for all of these years.

At worst, I feel like walking away. I don't fancy choosing to hang around, devote money, time and energy into a sport that is going to **** me when it feels like it then have the gaul to laugh in my face. If I wasn't so enamoured with it, I would use my consumer's right and put my money where my mouth is.

Unfortunately, if I'm being realistic, I know that's not going to happen.

But if Blatter keeps pushing me, if I'm constantly reminded of how much of a shambles my favourite sport is becoming, beaten over the head with it and asked to fork over my hard-earned cash and precious time for it...then let's see how I feel then. And I'd imagine a lot of you feel the same way today.

Try me, Sepp.

Rick