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Introduction F
ootball is a global, multi-million dollar business. In many countries, like Brazil and England, it is, as far as many are concerned, the only sport worth bothering with. insideworldfootball.biz is the leading online publication covering the business, politics and bid process behind the sport.
Published: November 2011 by insideworldfootball Limited
In this, our first ever printed publication dedicated to football, you will find an unbeatable assessment of the three forthcoming FIFA World Cup™ tournaments, written by our team of top journalists.
Editor: Duncan Mackay
Our sports news websites have established themselves as the market leaders and we have applied the same high production values to this brochure as we do to them.
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Andrew Warshaw who is one of the best known writers in British football and has an unrivalled knowledge of the sport’s politics. It was while he was editor at the European newspaper that they broke the story on the Bosman ruling which has transformed the sport. Mihir Bose who is one of the world’s most astute observers on politics in sport and, particularly, football. He wrote for The Sunday Times and The Daily Telegraph and was formerly the BBC’s head sports editor. Tom Degun who is a graduate of the University of Bedfordshire and is one of Britain’s best young journalists. Tom covers sports politics around the world for insidethegames.biz and insideworldfootball.biz. We are always free and always independent. If you like what you have read, why don’t you sign up for our free daily email e-alerts at www.insideworldfootball.biz or www.insidethegames.biz. Find out more about our other sports news websites and our publishing house, Dunsar Media Company Limited, at the back of the brochure. Duncan Mackay Editor, insideworldfootball.biz November 2011
Contents
Introduction 3 Duncan Mackay
Brazil: Miracles for Brazil
6
Russia: No rest for Sorokin
8
Andrew Warshaw Mihir Bose
Qatar: Impossible is nothing in Qatar 10 Tom Degun
Dunsar Media Company Limited: Information 12 Sarah Bowron
Editorial 14 Duncan Mackay
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Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva holds the FIFA World Cup™ trophy after Brazil are chosen as the hosts in 2014. (Photo Buddha Mendes / LatinContent / Getty Images)
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Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin gestures as he delivers a speech during a press conference after Russia was chosen to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup™. (Photo Fabrice Coffrini AFP/Getty Images)
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5
Miracles T for
Brazil Brazil has faced problems in its preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ and even its own President admits it is in a race against time. But Andrew Warshaw is convinced it is one race they will win. 6
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he giant makeshift marquees at the swish Marina da Glória in Rio de Janeiro where the 2014 World Cup qualifying draw took place in August have long been pulled down. But the excitement and the build-up have only just begun. Bold and brassy, sexy and spontaneous, there is little doubt that Brazil will put on a show in three years time worthy of its unmatched footballing heritage. On the beaches, in the favelas, among the street vendors, on television in virtually every bar, football is a national past-time. A love affair as passionate and intoxicating as the samba rhythms that permeate every corner of this vast and diverse nation. There is of course a downside. Football may be a national past-time here but whether you like it or not, 2014 has had a bad press and it’s easy to see why. The massive Maracanã, the world’s most iconic stadium that will rightly stage the World Cup final, still has to
be kicked into shape. And despite assurances from São Paulo officials that they will have a World Cup stadium to be proud of, the city where Pelé made his name definitely won’t be ready in time for the Confederations Cup in 2013 and, therefore, won’t have any proper dry run at which to pinpoint all the things that need tweaking. At grass-roots level, the so-called “People’s Committee of the World Cup and the Olympic Games” – which Rio de Janeiro is staging in 2016 – have made it known how unhappy they are about the forced removal of thousands of residents from Rio’s favelas to accommodate new venues and construction work. They may be in a minority but this is a country of stark economic extremes, which the occasional visitor doesn’t necessarily get a chance to take account of. Safety and security are other issues that undoubtedly need addressing, just as they did
ANDREW WARSHAW CHIEF FOOTBALL WRITER, INSIDEWORLDFOOTBALL
Left: Two Brazilian supporters anticipate the World Cup coming to their country. Above: Pele, the greatest of all Brazilian footballers, is only involved following the intervention of the country’s President Dilma Rouseff. Right inset: The iconic Maracana Stadium is being redeveloped in time for the 2014 World Cup, when it will stage the final. Right: Brazilians celebrate at the Christ the Redeemer after being awarded the 2014 World Cup
in South Africa last time round. But just as South Africa, heavily criticised in the build-up to the last World Cup, managed to get most things right in the end, so Brazilian organisers believe they are also on the right path. Work is underway on a new roof for the Maracanã, with all the removed concrete recycled elsewhere as part of massive $643 million (£400 million/€454 million) renovation in time for the Confederations Cup. Airports remain a major concern, with most of the 13 being used requiring upgrades during the next three years. Five are still to be started but government ministers are trying to put as positive a spin as possible on the issue. “We are confident that the airports will be ready in time for the World Cup,” Civil Aviation Minister Wagner Bittencourt maintained. “We can rest assured they won’t be a problem. In fact, they will be part of the solution.” Telecoms networks, roads and hotel capacity also have to be radically improved. Even President Dilma Rousseff recently admitted that Brazil was in “a race against time”. But it’s a race the country is determined to win. Brazil has budgeted $20.6 billion (£12.9 billion/€15 billion) to host sport’s most watched event. It is estimated that the three-
year build-up to the tournament will boost the economy by 1.5 per cent of GDP and that the level of investment will create 250,000 new jobs. Around 600,000 foreign visitors are expected to travel to Brazil during the tournament itself, generating up to $2.5 billion (£1.6 billion/€1.8 billion). Furthermore, around three million Brazilians are expected to take holidays in connection with the month-long programme of matches, which could potentially generate another $3.5 billion (£2.2 billion/€2.6 billion). At political level, whilst no-one would deny that the resignation of Sports Minister Orlando Silva was hardly an expression of unity, intense discussions between FIFA and the Brazilian Government over how to get round strict citizens’ rights enshrined in national law are on the right track. Already FIFA have agreed to allow Brazilians aged over 65 to attend matches for half price to comply with government legislation. At the end of the day, to quote a common
footballing cliché, no-one in their right mind could possibly argue against the World Cup returning to the nation that has won the trophy more times than anyone else. It’s more than half a century, 64 years in fact, since they last had the honour of hosting, far too long for a country that lives and breathes the game, a country of contrasts and colour that knows how to party like none other. The bottom line is that cynicism is gradually giving way to optimism. Rodrigo Paiva, a spokesman for the Rio de Janeiro-based local organising committee, insists that in the end the doubters will be proved wrong. “During the World Cup in South Africa there were no cases of violence, rape, robbery or burglary specific to the tournament,” he pointed out. “The World Cup can make miracles. We are going to take the new Brazil out to the world. We will increase social mobility, transform transportation, the infrastructure of our country, and overhaul Brazil’s self-image.”
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No rest for
Sorokin Alexey Sorokin masterminded Russia’s stunning campaign to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup™ but he is not resting on his laurels because he knows there is a lot of work to do if the event is to be the success everyone hopes. Mihir Bose talks to him.
A
lexey Sorokin could be forgiven for taking the rest of the year off, putting his feet up and patting himself on the back for a job well
done. But having secured the 2018 World Cup, Sorokin, the diplomat who was the public face of Russia’s bid, has an even tougher task on his hands - making sure, as chief executive of the Local Organising Committee, that the country can live up to its promise to put on a tournament to be proud of, as well as creating a lasting legacy. “It means a lot for Russia,” he says. “Not only an opportunity to organise the world’s greatest event, it’s an opportunity to improve our country, improve our infrastructure, not only sporting infrastructure, but the general one. “It gives us an opportunity to improve the perception of Russia abroad.” “We have some issues, we acknowledge that,” says Sorokin, “That gives us an opportunity to work on them. We do not claim that we have a perfect system, but who does? We’ll gradually overcome these issues, I’m absolutely sure.” The Russians intend to spend a lot of money to show off their way of life during 2018, “At the press conference dedicated to our victory,
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our Prime Minister [Vladimir Putin] disclosed that the figure would be $10 billion (£6 billion /€7 billion),” Sorokin recalls. “He expects a large contribution within that figure, of course, from rich private individuals. We will build what we need to build. “That doesn’t only mean sporting venues, it means everything that we deem necessary to build for the comfort of both Russians and visitors. “The World Cup will be an opportunity to show the world not only our hospitality, but the progress we have made over recent years. “It’s going to be proof of the stability of both the economic and political systems in Russia, the wealth, forgive me, which we have acquired over time and of the comfort that we can provide to visitors.” Russia will have to construct most of the new stadia from scratch, with just two of those proposed existing already - the Luzhniki, which hosted the 1980 Summer Olympic Games, and the stadium that is home to Dynamo Moscow. “It’s not 100 per cent decided but right now we are looking at 12 stadiums,” Sorokin adds. “We should know for sure in September next year.” That’s a year earlier than originally planned but there’s a lot of work to be done.
Host cities are likely to be spread out, like Brazil 2014, over a far larger area than normal. Transport networks in Moscow, particularly its surrounding highways, which are frequently heavily congested, need improvements completed before they are fit to host the World Cup. Sorokin is confident that a lot of people from abroad will travel to Russia for the World Cup . “We’re sure that it’s going to be in excess of a million from outside.” “During the bid phase, we always said that we are very well placed for people travelling from Asia, from the Middle East, from Europe.” “Latin America and North America are a bit further, but still very convenient.” Sorokin explains that the fans will be able to travel to the far-flung regions of Russia by train to watch matches: “We hope to develop the trains before the World Cup.” The recent FIFA crisis saw Vladimir Putin, the Russian Prime Minister, in contrast to some other world politicians, come out strongly in support of FIFA President Sepp Blatter. For Sorokin there are no problems working with FIFA, even though the South African organisers of the 2010 World Cup found
MIHIR BOSE COLUMNIST, INSIDEWORLDFOOTBALL
Main: Arsenal star Andrei Arshavin was part of the delegation, along with Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko, that presented Russia’s bid to FIFA. Righ inset: Happy Russians hear the news that they been awarded the 2018 World Cup. Below left: insideworldfootball editor Duncan Mackay interviews Russia 2018 chief executive Alexey Sorokin at the Inside World Football Moscow Forum earlier this year. Below right: Russia 2018 chief executive Alexey Sorokin. Bottom right: Luzhniki, which hosted the 1980 Moscow Olympics, will be the setting for the 2018 World Cup final.
doing so taxing on occasions, having to make changes to their laws in some cases. “What is the problem?” asks Sorokin. “At the Congress, there was a good intervention by the President [Costakis Koutsokoumnis] of the Cyprus Federation who said that ‘allegation’ is a very good English word. “Yes, one stands up, says something, steps aside, and then suddenly there’s a lot of people who have to explain something and yes, it gets a life of its own. “FIFA has always been a good partner; this partnership will grow only stronger during the next seven years.” He acknowledges that in future, bidders for the World Cup will also have a lot of learning to do. This is because the FIFA Congress, not the Executive Committee, will decide who hosts tournament. He said: “Since there are more parties involved in the voting, it means more work, more lobbying, more presentations, more travel for future candidates.” Was he glad that Russia was bidding only to the 22-man Executive Committee not to 208 member associations? “We would have done just as well with the entire 208, I’m sure,” he commented. Sorokin is a 39-year-old graduate of the
Moscow State Linguistic University, who cut his teeth in Russia’s diplomatic service and served in the Russian Embassy in Washington. His sports jobs have involved organising the Champions League Final between Manchester United and Chelsea in Moscow in 2008 and being general secretary of the Russian Football Federation before taking charge of the World Cup, first the bid process, now the organisation. This experience of sports has made him aware of what makes a successful bid: “A bid needs to appropriately evaluate resources and chances and, once a decision has been made, not be stopped by perceptions, by allegations or anything else, just move ahead towards the goal.” He also readily confesses that there was a fatal flaw in Moscow’s bid for 2012 Olympics. Moscow went head to head with London, Paris, Madrid and New York and was eliminated in the first round with only 15 votes. “Moscow made a mistake,” he said. The Government support for 2012 was not that articulate, it was not that strong, not the scope of support needed.” So well does Sorokin see the partnership with FIFA working that the world body will have
an important input in the message Russia develops for 2018: “Every country that has organised the World Cup has a different message. “That is one of the tasks of this year, to define the ideology, the vision of the World Cup. “We intend to do that under FIFA’s guidance.” With 2018 following on from a World Cup in Brazil the Russians know it will be a challenge to come up with the right message. They will be watching Brazil closely. “Well it will be interesting to see,” Sorokin added. “There will be a lot to learn, which we will do, of course.”
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Impossible is nothing
Qatar
in
Qatar has been at the centre of controversy since it was awarded the 2022 FIFA World Cup™ last December but, as Tom Degun reports from Doha, do not have any doubts that they can pull off a spectacular tournament.
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W
hen all-powerful FIFA President Sepp Blatter opened an envelope on December 2, 2010, to reveal that tiny Qatar had won the right to stage the 2022 World Cup, the general feeling that reverberated around the globe was of shock and bemusement. The world questioned just why FIFA had decided to take the most widely viewed sporting event on the planet to a location hidden away in the Middle East. Qatar quickly, and many believe unfairly, came under attack as it was alleged that the country’s phenomenal wealth, obtained from their enormous oil and natural gas revenues, was used to bribe a seemingly corrupt FIFA and simply buy the World Cup for the country. Further criticism followed as we were informed that drinking alcohol in Qatar was a serious crime, that fans displaying any sign of public
intimacy are beaten mercilessly before being thrown in jail and that the heat is so intense, you can fry an egg on the pavement in seconds. Well it is hot in Qatar, but I quickly learnt during my recent visit there that every other myth created in the wake of their 2022 World Cup bid triumph was completely unfounded. Hard fact, rather than mere speculation, shows that Qatar has wisely invested the huge amount of money at their disposal towards creating an unbelievable capital city in Doha. It sits perfectly on the edge of the crystal blue Persian Gulf and quite frankly must be seen to be believed. I arrived in the Qatari capital late at night and quickly found myself standing in a beautifully clean and wonderfully air-conditioned international airport. The terminal itself is incidentally adjacent to the simply named New Doha International Airport,
TOM DEGUN REPORTER, INSIDEWORLDFOOTBALL
Far left: FIFA President Sepp Blatter announces Qatar as hosts of the 2018 World Cup. Main: The Qatar delegation, which included several members of the Royal Family, celebrate being awarded the tournament. Left: Sheikh Hamad bin Khalfia Al Thani holds the World Cup watched by his wife as FIFA President Sepp Blatter congratulates Hassan Al-Thawadi, chief executive of Qatar 2022. Below: The Doha-Port Stadium is one of several new arenas being built to stage matches during the World Cup in Qatar.
which will open in the very near future as one of the world’s largest airports, eventually allowing over 50 million people a year to pass through. It was not long after my arrival that I was taken a short distance to the city centre, which is comprised of a combination of glittering skyscrapers, outrageously luxurious hotels and fascinating monuments that appear to defy gravity. Considering that alcohol is supposedly illegal in Qatar, I was rather surprised to find myself at a glamorous bar on my first night in Doha, seated outside on a comfortable deck chair, drinking an alcoholic cocktail. At night, the temperature in the country could not be nicer. I discovered the following day that it doesn’t actually matter how hot the country gets during sporting events because in Doha, where money is no object, the revolutionary air-cooling
technology simply comes into play. The much-vaunted technology was invented during the country’s bid to stage the 2022 World Cup and is somehow able to reduce the heat in a stadium down to as low as 10 degrees regardless of the temperature outside. Better still, the technology is being made environmentally friendly and during the World Cup it will also be used at fan zones and at training venues where it will act as the perfect counter to the heat. It would be highly misleading to say that the heat at midday in Qatar isn’t uncomfortable or that there are pubs on every street corner because there are not. But after actually being on the ground in Qatar for a relatively long period it does not seem so ludicrous to give the World Cup to a country that can counter any environmental problem thrown at them. This is coupled with the fact that the country is building at such a rate that by 2022 the city will end up resembling some sort of futuristic utopia. Given ten years, Doha has the financial firepower to make even the likes of London, New York and Paris look boring and out-dated. Perhaps its most outstanding feature currently in place is the magnificent Doha Aspire Sports City complex, which boasts the awe-inspiring 50,000 capacity Khalifa International Stadium a venue set to host a number of 2022 World Cup matches, including a semi-final. But one feels this phenomenal venue may soon be eclipsed by the appropriately named Lusail Iconic Stadium - the 86,250 seat arena scheduled to be completed in 2019, three years before it hosts a number of World Cup games, including the final. Encircled by a reflective pool of water, spectators will reach the venue by crossing the “moat” via one of six bridges. But the key feature of the venue, which will be situated in the heart of the new Qatari city, Lusail, that will be located just 15 kilometres north of Doha city centre, will be the saddleform roof that appears to float above the seating bowl as it is discreetly supported by a ring of
arching columns. Its central section can be retracted to allow the pitch to be either open to the sky or fully covered. The Lusail Iconic Stadium is one of 11 futuristic, air-conditioned stadiums that will be built for the 2022 World Cup, with the Khalifa International Stadium being the only World Cup venue currently up and running (but set for major modification before 2022, despite not really needing it). And in spite of the huge construction costs, don’t worry about the venues being ready on time because Qatar’s wealth is certainly not drying up any time soon. Such stadiums will provide stunning pictures for the billions watching the tournament from around the world, while the real bonus for those in attendance is that the country is so small, getting from one venue to the next will be little more than a short car journey. Behind the false reports, there’s a country doing the apparently unimaginable with the click of a finger. So why shouldn’t a nation able to build magnificent stadiums and create an outstanding legacy for sport in Qatar be able to host the FIFA World Cup™ finals? Listen to false reports from afar and you may disagree, but should you visit the place in person you will very quickly be won over, just as the FIFA inspection committee was. After all, when you can air condition any stadium in great heat and continue spending at an unbelievable rate despite a global economic downturn, there isn’t a lot that can stop you. In Qatar, impossible is nothing.
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SARAH BOWRON COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR, DUNSAR MEDIA COMPANY LIMITED
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DUNCAN MACKAY EDITOR, INSIDETHEGAMES
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ou are holding a little piece of history in your hands. Welcome to our first printed publication devoted to football and only the second ever printed publication from Dunsar Media Company Limited, the publishers of insideworldfootball.biz, insidethegames.biz, insideworldparasport. biz, insidegamescollecting.biz and insidesportjobs.biz. Our sports news websites have established themselves as the market leaders and we have applied the same high production values to this brochure as we do to them. I worked at the Guardian and Observer in England for 17 years and in 2004 was voted Britain’s Sports Journalist of the Year for my coverage of the Olympics in Athens that year. I now travel the world to cover the bidding, politics and business behind the Olympics, Paralympics, Commonwealth Games and football. Other regular contributors to insidethegames.biz include David Owen, the former sports editor of the Financial Times; Mike Rowbottom, who has covered every Olympics since Barcelona in 1992 and was at The Independent for 20 years; Mihir Bose, the ex-sports editor of The BBC; Alan Hubbard, a veteran Fleet Street sports editor who has worked at the Mail on Sunday and The Observer; and Tom Degun, one of Britain’s
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but the wider Olympic Movement and sports politics.
Between us we have decades of experience of working on major events, particularly when it comes to bidding - a Byzantine world which is worth billions of dollars each year. We have covered every bid race for the Olympics and FIFA World Cup™ since Atlanta was controversially awarded the 1996 Olympic Games more than 20 years ago.
insideworldfootball.biz was launched in November 2009, shortly followed by insideworldparasport.biz, the only commercial independent website in the world devoted to the Paralympics, which was launched in December 2009.
Our coverage of last year’s controversial FIFA World Cup™ contests for 2018 and 2022 was widely praised as being among the sharpest and most informed. Similarly, we have led the way in our coverage of the races to host the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics and 2018 Commonwealth Games. This brochure is another important milestone in insidethegames’ and insideworldfootball’s evolution. insidethegames launched in October 2005 shortly after London was awarded the Olympics and Paralympics and we have now established ourselves as the market leaders in news, not just about 2012,
insidesportjobs.biz was launched in November 2010 and has grown to recruit and place some of sport’s global players. insidegamescollecting.biz was launched in April this year to pay tribute to the number one spectator sport in the Olympic Movement – pin collecting and trading. Unlike other websites, we are always free and always independent. If you like what you have read, why don’t you sign up for our free daily email e-alerts at www.insidethegames. biz or www.insideworldfootball.biz. Duncan Mackay November 2011
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www.insidethegames.biz The world’s leading source of independent news and information about the Olympic and Paralympic Movements and the Commonwealth Games.