ZURICH – Concacaf wants a bigger say in the decision-making at the heart of FIFA.Jeffrey Webb, president of football's ruling body for North and Central America and the Caribbean, said yesterday he will urge his FIFA executive committee colleagues this week to look at how their influence is shared and how the panel's seats are allocated among the six continental confederations.
Concacaf currently has three representatives in the 25-member committee. Webb wants that increased to four.Webb believes that Fifa has a chance to make a modernising change in its current reform program, and should also reward Asia and Africa with a bigger say by giving them one extra committee member each. They currently have four apiece."Right now, it's not on the table, there's no discussion and that is one of the disappointments from my standpoint," Webb said in an interview at Fifa headquarters.
The committee chaired by president Sepp Blatter begins a two-day session today, and is due to approve a slate of reforms which the 209 Fifa member nations will vote on in Mauritius in May 31."I am hoping this week will be the start of a discussion that Fifa starts to look at proportional representation throughout the confederations," Webb said. "There is a potential for us to miss an opportunity and I don't think we should."
The Cayman Islands banker will lead a three-man delegation representing his 35 Fifa member nations, along with Chuck Blazer of the United States and Rafael Salguero of Guatemala.
Africa (54 nations) and Asia (46) are individually outnumbered by eight committee members from Uefa representing 53 Fifa member countries. Europe has traditionally held most power since football's world governing body was formed by a handful of countries in Paris in 1904.
If there were to be a reshuffle of executive committee members, it could well be at the expense of Uefa's traditional influence.Webb indicated that not all traditions have their place in the modern game."What was created (109) years ago does not necessarily reflect the realities, and I don't think is relevant to today's world," Webb said.As for Fifa's reform programme, Uefa has published its own list of suggestions, while Concacaf unanimously backed the slate proposed by a Fifa-appointed task force.
"I'm really happy and proud that our confederation embraced (the task force's) work and respected their work," Webb said. "We are prepared to adopt the recommendations they propose, but I think it needs to go deeper."Webb said he has yet to discuss his proposal with Uefa President Michel Platini, who is a probable candidate to lead Fifa in 2015.
However, the Concacaf leader expressed support for Blatter's commitment to modernise Fifa."I am sure that president Blatter is very much committed to (reform)," Webb said. "He wants a Fifa that is transparent, he wants a Fifa that is built on solid foundations." (AP)