Kamasz blasts FIFA decision

Soccer Australia’s acting chief executive Stefan Kamasz has slammed FIFA’s decision to snatch back Oceania’s direct World Cup qualification spot, only seven months after granting it, as “outrageous” and “politically motivated“.

Top officials at both Soccer Australia and New Zealand Soccer, the leading associations in the Oceania federation, were unaware until FIFA’s announcement yesterday that their automatic qualification place was in jeopardy.

So it was with astonishment and rising anger that they learned the decision not to increase the World Cup from 32 to 36 teams had had a direct bearing on Oceania’s position.

FIFA voted emphatically for the policy U-turn, which Kamasz fears could have a devastating impact on the development of soccer in a country, and a region, that is dominated by other footballing codes.

But it was the political motivation behind the decision to appease the South American (CONMEBOL) countries that really caught in his throat, particularly the comments made afterwards by UEFA chairman Lennart Johansson.

Kamasz felt Johansson had stabbed Oceania in the back after it was their abstention from a crucial vote that sealed Germany’s successful bid for the 2006 World Cup.

“There is no justice in all of this,” Kamasz told PA International. “I find it quite outrageous that in December, FIFA president Sepp Blatter was saying that now Oceania have access to the World Cup, an injustice had been corrected.

“Yesterday, Lennart Johansson was saying they had corrected a mistake (by reversing the decision).

“I ask you, where is the justice that Sepp Blatter has been talking about?

“If we are talking politics, it was interesting that Lennart Johansson’s confederation got the 2006 World Cup because of the way in which the Oceania representative acted.

“Obviously, now they have got that, it is a case of ‘don’t worry about Oceania and look after your other mates for the future’.

“I can’t believe that FIFA would engage in this sort of behaviour.

“It indicates where Oceania sits in the grand scheme of things as far as FIFA is concerned, despite the rhetoric of trying to develop the sport down here.

“When it comes to the crunch and ensuring the powerful nations have a say, we realise where we sit in the pecking order.”

The decision to award one Oceania country direct qualification to the World Cup formed part of Blatter’s re-election campaign.

While the place was not automatically Australia’s, it did give the Socceroos the best chance ever of qualifying for the 2006 tournament, an achievement which would have given soccer a significant boost in the region.

One of the reasons used to justify the “backflip”, as FIFA’s decision is being described in the Australia media, was the upheaval that has gone on at Soccer Australia in recent times.

But Kamasz denounced the statement as “blatantly untrue”, adding it proved why the decision was “purely politically motivated”.

He said: “When FIFA made the decision to give Oceania direct qualification in December, Soccer Australia was in a much worse position than it is now.

“There had been mass defections from Soccer Australia, there was an enquiry into Soccer Australia’s solvency, there was a government enquiry underway and a projected shortfall of four million Australian dollars.

“Today, Soccer Australia is profitable, we have turned around the financial position, we satisfied the concern into our solvency and the Frank Lowy interim board will be elected on July 19.

“The turnaround in the last six months has been quite incredible.

“FIFA knows this, so there is absolutely no doubt that to raise that as an issue is looking for reasons to justify a politically motivated decision that quite obviously satisfies COMNEBOL.”

Kamasz also dismissed suggestions Oceania would be content to be awarded the World Club Championship or Confederations Cup as recompense.

“My view is big deal,” he said. “If you ask every country in Oceania what their preference would be, it would be direct qualification.

“Anything else would be second best.”