Russia’s Mutko ‘barred from Fifa post’
ZURICH: Fifa has barred Russian deputy prime minister Vitaly Mutko, chief organiser of the World Cup to be held in his country next year, from sitting on the world body’s ruling council, a source close to Fifa said on Friday.
Mutko, who has also been accused of involvement in Russia’s sports doping scandal, is one of five European candidates for seats on the Fifa Council to be decided in April. The source said European football’s governing body UEFA has been told he cannot stand.
A Fifa watchdog blocked Mutko, who has had a seat on the Fifa top table since 2009, because of potential conflicts of interest with his government role, the source said. The decision is a new blow to the 58-yearold Mutko, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, who was barred from last year’s Rio Olympics in the fallout from an inquiry which accused Russia of “state-sponsored” doping.
But the source denied that the doping scandal had played any role in the decision.
Mutko has been elected by UEFA to represent them on Fifa’s ruling body since 2009.
But his Fifa seat is due for re-election in April and all candidates must be vetted by Fifa’s control commission under new rules brought in after world football’s corruption scandal.
Mutko has been ruled “not eligible” for a place, the source said.
“This decision by the control commission was taken because of the deputy prime minister’s post that Mr Mutko occupies and so the possible interference and conflicts of interest,” the source said.
Fifa’s ethics code prohibits political interference in football affairs and the world body has in the past suspended national federations where governments have been judged to have taken control.
‘POLITICALLY NEUTRAL’ Mutko said he would not appeal the decision, but stressed it would have no effect on Russia’s preparations to host the 2018 World Cup.
“They want the organisation to be politically neutral, so that civil servants and representatives of the authorities of different countries don’t run in all bodies. It is their right,” Mutko told the TASS news agency on Friday.
Putin promoted Mutko from sports minister to deputy prime minister last October despite the controversy raging over doping in Russian sport.
A report by Canadian lawyer Richard McLaren for the World Anti-Doping Agency ( WADA) said the sports ministry had organised the doping.
Mutko and the Russian government have strongly denied any involvement in the use of banned substances however.
The McLaren report “played absolutely no role in the decision of the commission,” according to the source close to Fifa.
The commission can also not prevent Mutko from remaining as head of Russia’s 2018 World Cup organising committee. He is also head of the Russian federation.
“That is not part of Fifa’s jurisdiction,” the source said.
NEW UEFA RACE The 55-member UEFA will choose its Fifa representatives at a congress in Helsinki on April 5.
The other four candidates are Hungary’s Sandor Csanyi, Cypriot Costakis Koutsokoumnis, Dejan Savicevic of Montenegro and Iceland’s Geir Thorsteinsson.
Fifa started its integrity check on candidates in December and there have been doubts about Mutko’s eligibility since.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino denied however that he had asked Mutko to stand down as World Cup organiser because of the doping controversy.