ZURICH, Switzerland (Reuters) – Sepp Blatter was re-elected president of FIFA for a fifth term yesterday after his only challenger conceded defeat in an election overshadowed by allegations of rampant corruption in world football.Blatter’s victory came despite demands that he quit in the face of a major bribery scandal being investigated by U.S., Swiss and other law enforcement agencies that plunged football’s governing body into the worst crisis in its 111-year history.
Yet his mandate, which was far from convincing, raises fresh questions over his leadership with the possibility of civil war in international football, unhappy sponsors demanding reform and prosecutors looking to widen their investigations.
Neither Blatter nor Jordanian opponent Prince Ali bin Al Hussein got the necessary two-thirds of the ballot in the first round, with Blatter securing 133 votes against 73 for Prince Ali. However, Prince Ali swiftly conceded.
“I congratulate you if you voted for Prince Ali, he was a good candidate, but I am the president now, the president of everybody,” the 79-year-old Blatter said in his victory speech, knowing he faces a barrage of criticism and countless problems.
UEFA, the powerful European confederation, has been staunchly opposed to another term for the Swiss, and their president Michel Platini has even raised the possibility, albeit unlikely, of Europe boycotting the World Cup.
There has also been talk of UEFA breaking away from FIFA, which is also unlikely, but nothing can be ruled out.
Blatter’s future could yet depend on the reaction of FIFA’s key sponsors and stakeholders who have been deeply dismayed by recent events after a traumatic week for FIFA.
One of its top sponsors Anheuser-Busch, the maker of Budweiser, said after Blatter’s win: “We expect the next FIFA presidency to resolve internal issues, install positive change and adhere to strong ethical standards and transparency.”
FIFA, ruled over by Blatter since 1998, was rocked this week by the arrest of seven senior officials in a pre-dawn police raid at a luxury Swiss hotel as part of an investigation into widespread financial wrongdoing stretching back for years.
Blatter has batted away the furore, relying on his network of friends to hold onto power at FIFA, which he joined in 1975.
Prince Ali, in his pitch for votes, had pledged an open, more democratic FIFA, saying: “We have heard in recent days, voices which described our FIFA as an avaricious body which feeds on the game that the world loves.
“There are no easy answers. And no blame that can be cast that will wash away the stain that marks us all,” he said.

EMBRACE REFORM
While Asian, African and Latin American states had been expected to rally around Blatter, Europe, which accounts for all but three of the countries that have ever made it to the final of the World Cup, had been keen for him to step aside.
European football chiefs said after the vote that FIFA had to embrace reform. “Change in my opinion is crucial if this organisation is to regain its credibility,” said Platini.
U.S. authorities have accused top FIFA figures and sports executives of corruption, while Switzerland is investigating the award of the next World Cup finals to Russia and Qatar.
The scandal widened yesterday when Britain’s Serious Fraud Office said it was examining possible corruption at FIFA.
A judge in Argentina has ordered the arrest of three businessmen accused of using bribery to obtain football media rights, and the Brazilian Senate moved to open a formal inquiry into football bribery allegations.
Marco Polo del Nero, the president of the Brazilian Football Confederation, dramatically flew back to Brazil from the FIFA Congress shortly before yesterday’s vote. Former Brazilian football chief Jose Maria Marin was also arrested this week in connection with the case.
del Nero told a press conference yesterday he did not plan to resign and “had nothing to do” with corruption.
FIFA takes in billions of dollars in revenue from television marketing rights and sponsorships, making it one of the wealthiest and most powerful sport bodies in the world. It has been dogged by corruption scandals for decades, mostly investigating itself and avoiding scrutiny by criminal courts.
Russia and Qatar deny wrongdoing in their bids to host the Cup in 2018 and 2022 respectively.
When asked after the vote if he could guarantee the next edition would still be staged in Russia, FIFA’s secretary-general Jerome Valcke told reporters: “Yes, yes. I mean now today, if you ask me the question at twenty to eight, yes the World Cup will be played in Russia and Qatar.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused the United States of meddling in an effort to force Blatter out.
Russia’s Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko told state broadcaster Rossiya24 they were happy with the outcome of yesterday’s vote and added that the timing of the arrests had been chosen to complicate Blatter’s re-election.
“In general, of course we are pleased with the result. Russia was backing Blatter. We also believe … much needs to be done to change football,” Mutko said.

QATAR’S DEFENCE
Qatar yesterday issued a further defence of its bid and said it would carry on with plans to stage the 2022 event.
The decision to host the world’s biggest football tournament in a small desert state where daytime summer temperatures rarely fall below 40 degrees Celsius startled many in global sport, and went against the advice of FIFA’s own technical committee.
Many of Blatter’s opponents have spoken of steps they can take against him. English Football Association chairman Greg Dyke, who has suggested that England might back a possible boycott of the 2018 World Cup, said FIFA’s crisis was not over.
“This is the beginning, not the end. I think there is a lot more of this to play out,” he told Sky News shortly after Blatter had seen off Ali’s challenge — the first time he has faced an opponent at a FIFA election since 2002.
Blatter had repeatedly promised not to stand for re-election again, but as his fourth mandate drew to a close he changed his tune and said he needed yet another term to complete his work.
Other European football officials have also alluded to the prospect of a boycott, but that is still seen as unlikely given the tournament’s importance to the global game.
The newly-constituted FIFA executive committee meets for the first time today to discuss slots for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals.
Platini has warned Blatter he will not tolerate losing any of Europe’s 13 places. If Blatter attempts to do that and Europe is outflanked in an Exco vote, international football could be plunged into civil war.
Most of the developing world in Africa, Asia and parts of Central America and the Caribbean are happy that FIFA under Blatter has guaranteed them annual grants and bonus payments in World Cup years.
Addressing the Congress yesterday, Blatter promised to boost the profile of Pacific island football federations grouped in Oceania, and said more had to be done to promote women.
“Let’s go FIFA! Let’s go FIFA!” he said to a standing ovation.

By Mike Collett and Brian Homewood