On 16 August 2011 [Tuesday], an anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency International (TI) stated that FIFA should limit terms for senior officials, set up an independent group to clear up anti-corruption allegations and "embrace transparency" in its organization.
TI said that, despite recent measures, world football's governing body still gave the impression of being run "like an old boys network".
TI also added that the new group should be composed of representatives from outside FIFA, such as elder statesmen, sponsors, media and civil society, and inside football, such as players, women's football, referees and supporters.
"Fifa says it wants to reform, but successive bribery scandals have left public trust in it at an all time low."
"Working with an oversight group - taking its advice, giving it access, letting it participate in investigations - will show whether there is going to be real change. The process has to start now,"said Sylvia Schenk, TI's senior advisor on sport.
Fifa president Sepp Blatter, re-elected for a fourth term in June 2011, promised to create a new committee to act as a watchdog, mentioning former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and Spanish tenor Placido Domingo as possible members.
He has yet to announce further details.
In its report, the Berlin-based watchdog, which issues a global league table of the least corrupt nations, said:
"FIFA is both a non-governmental, non-profit organisation and a global company with huge revenues, unprecedented reach, political clout and enormous worldwide social influence."
But it said Fifa was only accountable to its 208 member associations who elected the FIFA president and in turn, received handouts from football's governing body.
"This lack of mandatory accountability to the outside world makes it unlikely that change will come either from within the organisation or from the grassroots of the football organisations," the report added.
In conclusion, FIFA has been hit by a series of corruption scandals.
Two executive committee members were banned last November 2010 for allegedly offering to sell their votes in the contest to host World Cup 2018 and 2022, subsequently awarded to Russia and Qatar respectively.
Last month, Asian Football Confederation chief Mohammed Bin Hammam was banned for life for allegedly trying to buy votes in the June 2011 presidential election where he was a candidate.
Also fellow executive committee member Jack Warner, a leading FIFA powerbroker, quit after being put under investigation in the same case.
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