Fifa presidential election – live blog! | Sean Ingle and Paul Doyle

• Click F5 to refresh and post your thoughts below • Whistleblower Blazer ‘sacked’ • Fifa must postpone election, says FA chairman 9.30am: And so the unquestioning support for Blatter continues. The man from Benin announces: “We must be proud to belong to Fifa. We must massively express our support to President Blatter. Please applaud!” Cue loud applause. 9.25am: Now it’s the turn of a delegate from Haiti, who makes a candy-floss sweet five-minute paean to Blatter. As does the head of the Congo FA, who makes also makes a direct criticism of the English FA: “He who accuses must provide evidence,” he fumes. Has he been living on Mars in the past week? And there’s more: “A single candidate sometimes proves that people are satisfied with that candidate,” says the Congo FA man, to loud applause from the floor. 9.15am: FA chairman David Bernstein is called to the stage and makes a short – but direct speech – calling for a delay in the Fifa presidential election. “A lot of people have warned me I shouldn’t be making this speech,” he begins, “but Fifa is a democratic organisation” [cue no laughter at all from the delegates]. Bernstein continues: “The election has turned into a one-horse race. Only with a contested election will the winner have…a proper, credible mandate. We are faced by an unsatisfactory situation & universal criticism from governments, sponsors, media and public.” He is applauded by roughly three people as he leaves the stage. 9.10am: This from our reporter David Conn: Swiss FA president is saying sports bodies are here because it is welcoming. Demonstrators outside say it’s for tax breaks. Not everyone outside is demonstrating, mind. This from Richard Conway of Sky Sports: “Page 3 girls from The Sun offering cash to FIFA members on arrival.” 9.00am: Fifa’s general secretary Jérôme Valcke, making his first public appearance since his claims that Qatar “bought” the 2022 World Cup were made public, takes a roll call of members at the congress. “Afghanistan: present; Albania: present …” An hypnotic 10 minutes later he breaks the torpor by announcing, “The 208 member associations are all present, Mr President.” Yes, even Libya. Cue applause from Fifa delegates. 8.45am: Sepp Blatter opens the final day of the 61st Fifa congress with his usual rambling platitudes and appeals to Fifa’s ‘family’, and a nod, at least, to the choppy waters that Fifa suffered in recent days. “The Fifa ship must be brought back on the right route,” says Blatter. “And I am the captain. And I can only do it with your help.” Good morning and welcome to our live blog on the Fifa presidential election, writes Sean Ingle. Over the next 10 hours or so we will bring you the latest news and reaction from the final day of the Fifa congress, plus analysis and comment from our reporters David Conn and Matt Scott on the ground. Yesterday the Football Association proposed that the election be postponed , but few rallied round their tattered flag; Michel Platini declined to risk a last-minute challenge to Sepp Blatter , and Concacaf’s acting president, Lisle Austin, first attempted to sack the whistleblower and Warner’s chief accuser, Chuck Blazer, only for the confederation to issue a statement an hour later saying he had no authority to do so. So what will today bring? The unopposed election of Sepp Blatter, sure, but perhaps the odd moment of discomfort for Fifa along the way too. Fifa Sepp Blatter Sean Ingle Paul Doyle guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 1, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.