PORT LOUIS — Proposed age limits for Fifa officials could be considered as a form of discrimination, president Sepp Blatter said yesterday, as the 77-year-old reaffirmed his opposition to the idea.
Reuters
“It’s not up to me, we are in a democratic process with the member associations voting,” he said in an interview with Fifa’s website (www.fifa.com).
“However, personally, I’ve already said I was against the age limit as I believe it is not a relevant criteria, not everyone is the same at 60, 70, 80, etc. It could even be seen as discriminatory. Passion makes the difference.”
Fifa’s annual congress in Mauritius will decide on Friday whether to impose age limits for senior Fifa officials as well as limiting the number of mandates they can serve, which is currently unlimited.
“I am not against a limitation of a number of mandates, this rule applies in many democracies in fact. But then it should apply to everybody,” said Blatter who is in his fourth mandate.
Blatter also praised the reforms Fifa has already implemented to root out corruption following a series of high-profile cases.
“I believe in our process, we achieved a lot already and the system in place works well. I think it’d be unfair to say we are not doing well,” he said.
