It’s been less than a week since FIFA President Sepp Blatter was elected to a fifth term leading soccer’s international governing body, but he announced Tuesday that he will resign from the position, according to ESPN.
Scandal hit the soccer world last Wednesday when several high-ranking FIFA officials were arrested in Zurich as part of a corruption investigation. United States authorities indicted 14 people on charges of wire fraud, racketeering and money laundering, which allegedly included more than $150 million in bribes, ESPN reports.
Despite the scandal, Blatter was reelected to the position Friday. Now that he is stepping down, he will remain president until a special election is held to select his replacement, which will be sometime between December 2015 and March 2016, according to ESPN.
Blatt’s resignation will certainly affect the international business world. It could change how FIFA’s corporate sponsors, like McDonald’s and Coca-Cola, respond to growing allegations of corruption and human rights violations against the governing body. Time reports that FIFA made $177 million from marketing partnerships last year.
Patrick Rishe, a contributor at Forbes, writes that the resignation and further investigations could also pave the way for FIFA officials to revisit the controversial decision to have Qatar host the 2022 World Cup, soccer’s premier international tournament.
For story ideas, see if you can find any local bars or restaurants that show soccer and ask if they considered stopping after the FIFA arrests. You can also ask soccer fans how the scandal has affected their view of the governing body and if they’ve stopped buying products from FIFA sponsors.
