Only five days after winning re-election as the president of FIFA and dubbing himself the right man to fix the scandal-rocked organization, Sepp Blatter announced his resignation on Tuesday.
"I appreciate and love FIFA more than anything else," Blatter said, per Sam Borden of The New York Times. "And I only want to do the best for FIFA."
The 79-year-old Blatter had come under fire in recent days as the result of a corruption scandal involving FIFA which tore through the international soccer community and led to the arrest of seven FIFA officials. Despite the scandal and arrests, Blatter won a fifth term as FIFA president on Friday.
"For the next four years I will be in command of this boat called FIFA and we will bring it back ashore, we will bring it back to the beach," he said after his victory was announced, via The Guardian.
Blatter insisted then that he was the right man to fix the issues facing FIFA - issues he blamed on the United States and England.
"We are at a turning point. We need to pull together and move forward. We can't constantly supervise everyone in football," said Blatter. "You can't just ask people to behave ethically just like that."
It seems the rest of FIFAs decision-makers disagree as Blatter's relationship with the organization will now come to a sudden close. He said during a hastily convened press conference in Zurich on Tuesday that he believes "FIFA needs a profound restructuring."
''This mandate does not seem to be supported by everybody in the world of football,'' Blatter said, per The Associated Press. ''FIFA needs a profound restructuring.''
He said that he would ask FIFA to schedule a new election as soon as possible and acknowledged that the world's governing soccer body could not wait very long to find new leadership.
Blatter has worked for FIFA since 1975 and held the position of president since 1998. He won Friday's election with a vote of 133-73.
He said that he would continue to hold his station until a new president is named.
''I will continue to exercise my function (until the new election),'' Blatter said, per AP.
Read the full transcript of Blatter's remarks here:
I have been reflecting deeply about my presidency and about the 40 years in which my life has been inextricably bound to FIFA and the great sport of football. I cherish FIFA more than anything and I want to do only what is best for FIFA and for football. I felt compelled to stand for re-election, as I believed that this was the best thing for the organization. That election is over but FIFA's challenges are not. FIFA needs a profound overhaul. While I have a mandate from the membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football - the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as much as we all do at FIFA. Therefore, I have decided to lay down my mandate at an extraordinary elective Congress.
I will continue to exercise my functions as FIFA President until that election. The next ordinary FIFA Congress will take place on 13 May 2016 in Mexico City. This would create unnecessary delay and I will urge the Executive Committee to organize an Extraordinary Congress for the election of my successor at the earliest opportunity. This will need to be done in line with FIFA's statutes and we must allow enough time for the best candidates to present themselves and to campaign. Since I shall not be a candidate, and am therefore now free from the constraints that elections inevitably impose, I shall be able to focus on driving far-reaching, fundamental reforms that transcend our previous efforts.
For years, we have worked hard to put in place administrative reforms, but it is plain to me that while these must continue, they are not enough. The Executive Committee includes representatives of confederations over whom we have no control, but for whose actions FIFA is held responsible. We need deep-rooted structural change. The size of the Executive Committee must be reduced and its members should be elected through the FIFA Congress. The integrity checks for all Executive Committee members must be organized centrally through FIFA and not through the confederations.
We need term limits not only for the president but for all members of the Executive Committee. I have fought for these changes before and, as everyone knows, my efforts have been blocked. This time, I will succeed. I cannot do this alone. I have asked Domenico Scala to oversee the introduction and implementation of these and other measures. Mr. Scala is the Independent Chairman of our Audit and Compliance Committee elected by the FIFA Congress. He is also the Chairman of the ad hoc Electoral Committee and, as such, he will oversee the election of my successor. Mr. Scala enjoys the confidence of a wide range of constituents within and outside of FIFA and has all the knowledge and experience necessary to help tackle these major reforms.
It is my deep care for FIFA and its interests, which I hold very dear, that has led me to take this decision. I would like to thank those who have always supported me in a constructive and loyal manner as President of FIFA and who have done so much for the game that we all love. What matters to me more than anything is that when all of this is over, football is the winner.
