FIFA executive committee to make progress on reforms
ZURICH (AP) The FIFA executive committee will discuss ongoing reforms for the scandal-scarred soccer body at a meeting in Zurich next week.
FIFA published an agenda for the Dec. 2-3 session on Tuesday, confirming the executive committee will hear from reforms advisory chairman Francois Carrard.
A slate of Carrard's proposals - which could include taking some decision-making away from the executive committee, and imposing age and term limits on senior officials - will be sent to the FIFA congress on Feb. 26 for approval.
Executive committee members will also be updated next week on the American and Swiss federal investigations into corruption in soccer.
Interim FIFA President Issa Hayatou is also scheduled to report on a Dec. 2 finance committee meeting. FIFA will likely report an annual loss next March after failing to sign any World Cup sponsor deals in 2015.
The meeting was originally intended to have been held in Japan on Dec. 17-18, on the sidelines of the Club World Cup.
The switch to Zurich was made in September when Sepp Blatter still chaired the executive committee and did not want to visit countries having extradition agreements with the United States.
Blatter has since been suspended from duty over a $2 million payment of FIFA money to UEFA President Michel Platini in 2011. Both are currently barred from attending the executive session, though have pledged to challenge their 90-day interim bans at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Two new delegates from South America could attend next week in Zurich to take over from colleagues implicated by U.S. federal prosecutors in taking bribes from Copa America marketing deals.
The 10-nation CONMEBOL confederation is scheduled to meet this week in Rio de Janeiro and could appoint replacements for Marco Polo del Nero of Brazil and Luis Bedoya of Colombia.
FIFA said the executive committee will next meet on Feb. 24 in Zurich, two days before the presidential election to replace Blatter.