Ex-DFB boss wants change

Theo Zwanziger, the former president of the German Football Federation (DFB), has stressed the importance of releasing Michael Garcia's full report into corruption allegations for public consumption.

"After the confusion of the past days, it is important to have an insight into the Garcia report as soon as possible," said Zwanziger, quoted on the website of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ).

Zwanziger, a member of FIFA's Executive Committee, is looking to change Article 37 of FIFA's Code of Ethics and will put his proposals to a vote when the committee reconvenes on December 18 at the FIFA Club World Cup in Morocco.

"In the current state, the rule forbids (the report) to be released by the Ethics Committee. I would like to loosen this ban, so that the Executive Committee, and also the public, can be informed of the contents of the investigation," he said.

Next step

FIFA's Executive Committee awarded the hosting rights to Russia and Qatar for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups on December 2, 2010. The process and aftermath has been marred with controversy and allegations of corruption: Michael Garcia, a Manhattan-based former public prosecutor, was tasked with investigating these when he was appointed to head FIFA's Ethics Committee in July 2012.

Garcia's 430-page document was presented to the adjudicatory chamber in September, but FIFA have since stood firm on releasing the full investigation to the public. German judge Hans-Joachim Eckert maintained that this was not legally possible, instead publishing a 42-page summary of his interpretation of the full report.

Hours later, Garcia claimed that Eckert's summary of the full report made "numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of the facts and conclusions."

The two met on Thursday and agreed that Domenico Scala, the Swiss-Italian chairman of the FIFA Audit and Compliance Committee, "will receive full copies of all reports of the investigatory chamber...to determine how much of that information should be made available to the FIFA Executive Committee."

The outcome appears to be unlikely to stem the wave of criticism in the direction of FIFA's HQ in Zurich, Switzerland. Several top European officials have threatened action, if there is not a recount of the votes that handed Russia and Qatar their first-ever World Cups.

The former head of the English Football Association David Bernstein called on his former employers to take a no-nonsense stance and agree to boycott the tournament. Bernstein was speaking after President of the German Football League (DFL) Reinhard Rauball mooted that UEFA, Europe's association, could consider splitting away from FIFA.

Christian Seifert, the Chief Executive of the DFL, echoed Rauball's views in an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung to be published on Saturday. "I fully agree that we must urgently consider measures," he said.

'Boycott is nonsense'

But FIFA's general secretary, Jerome Valcke, has rubbished suggestions of a boycott of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. The FIFA official, who visited the host nation of the next tournament has accused countries considering withdrawing of looking to "provoke" a situation rather than look at "what is realistic".

Valcke met with the World Cup organizing committee in Sochi and told the Russian Interfax news agency the World Cup shouldn't be a "political instrument," with reference to the ongoing troubles in Eastern Ukraine.

A finalized schedule for the World Cup in Russia and the preceding Confederations Cup in 2017 will be presented next July, Valcke confirmed.

FIFA elections will take place on May 29, 2015. President Sepp Blatter is running for a fifth term, his only confirmed rival, former ally Jerome Champagne, is not considered likely to provide much competition to Blatter.

rd/msh (dpa, AFP, AP)