Fifa leader Sepp Blatter has defended his actions battling corruption ahead of a vote to decide on whether he remains as president of football’s beleaguered world body.
But Blatter expressed doubts about timing of the arrests of seven top football officials just two days ahead of the election he has been strong favourite to win.
“I am not saying it was a coincidence. But I do have a small question mark,” the Swiss official told the start of FIFA’s annual congress.
Blatter, 79, is being challenged by Prince Ali bin Al Hussein, a Fifa vice president. The prince, strongly backed by Europe’s football powers, has campaigned on the need for change at the top of the scandal-tainted body.
Fifa was rocked on Wednesday by the arrest of seven officials in a dawn raid on their Zurich hotel. They now face extradition to the United States where they are accused of accepting tens of millions of dollars.
Separately, Swiss investigators are looking into the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar. The votes have also been at the centre of corruption allegations.
Blatter said the arrest of the seven at Fifa’s Zurich hotel had unleashed a “storm” and that the congress has “vital decisions” to take. But he added: “Today I appeal for a team spirit, unity, so we can advance together. It may not be easy but that is why we are here today.”
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Blatter, who rejected a call to quit from Uefa president Michel Platini, repeated his case that he cannot “monitor” all of football alone and cannot be blamed for the scandals.
“The guilty ones are individuals, not the whole organisation,” he said, calling for greater action by regional confederations and national associations “to put Fifa on the right track.”
Blatter, who has confronted scandals almost since he became president in 1998, is favourite to win a fifth four-year term because he has solid support from the key African and Asian confederations which account for 100 votes among the 209 member federations.
Platini has said a “very large majority” of the 53 European federations who take part will back Prince Ali.
Blatter needs a three-quarters majority to win in the first round. If it goes to a second round, a simple majority will do.
The boss of football’s governing organisation remained defiant as governments joined leading figures of the global game and sponsors in crying foul over Fifa’s corruption scandal.
While Russia’s President Vladimir Putin condemned the US action in asking for the extradition of the seven officials, British Prime Minister David Cameron backed calls for Blatter to resign.
French President Francois Hollande said sports groups selecting the hosts of major events must be “irreproachable”.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that if world football cannot clear up “poisonous” corruption, government agencies would be forced to step in.
Commercial fallout grew with South Korea’s Hyundai Motor, a major sponsor of Fifa, saying it was “extremely concerned” at the new scandals.
Credit card giant Visa has threatened to “reassess” its sponsorship if Fifa does not clean up its act. Coca-Cola, Adidas, McDonald’s and Budweiser have also spoken out. The United Nations says it is reviewing its cooperation accords with Fifa.
The seven arrested football officials — including Fifa vice presidents Jeffrey Webb and Eugenio Figueredo — remained in custody on Friday. Six have indicated they will fight extradition to the United States, Swiss authorities said.
The Concacaf confederation for North and Central America and the Caribbean said it had provisionally dismissed Webb as its president.
An Argentine judge ordered the arrest of three businessmen who were among the 14 people indicted by the United States in its probe.
Brazil said it would investigate with “great vigour” charges against the vice president of the Brazilian Football Confederation and a broadcasting executive also listed on the US indictment sheet.
The corruption storm is unlikely to ease with Blatter’s reelection.
Platini said Uefa could discuss measures against Fifa on June 6.
English Football Association chief executive Greg Dyke, one of the most vociferous Blatter critics, acknowledged that Blatter would probably win.
But he told BBC radio there has been “a shift” in opinion in the past week.
“I hope he doesn’t win but if he does I think the events of this week have turned him into a diminished figure and I can’t see him lasting more than a year or two.”
Dyke said England would consider a boycott of the 2018 World Cup if all of Uefa decided it.
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Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
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THE SCORES
Ireland 125 all out
(20 overs; Stirling 72, Mustafa 4-18)
UAE 125 for 5
(17 overs, Mustafa 39, D’Silva 29, Usman 29)
UAE won by five wickets
FA%20Cup%20semi-final%20draw
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
Match info
Manchester United 4
(Pogba 5', 33', Rashford 45', Lukaku 72')
Bournemouth 1
(Ake 45 2')
Red card: Eric Bailly (Manchester United)
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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The stats
Ship name: MSC Bellissima
Ship class: Meraviglia Class
Delivery date: February 27, 2019
Gross tonnage: 171,598 GT
Passenger capacity: 5,686
Crew members: 1,536
Number of cabins: 2,217
Length: 315.3 metres
Maximum speed: 22.7 knots (42kph)
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
LIVERPOOL%20TOP%20SCORERS
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SEMI-FINAL
Monterrey 1
Funes Mori (14)
Liverpool 2
Keita (11), Firmino (90 1)
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Suggested picnic spots
Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
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The%20Color%20Purple
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Saturday's results
West Ham 2-3 Tottenham
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton
Bournemouth 1-2 Wolves
Brighton 0-2 Leicester City
Crystal Palace 1-2 Liverpool
Everton 0-2 Norwich City
Watford 0-3 Burnley
Manchester City v Chelsea, 9.30pm
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Traits of Chinese zodiac animals
Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent
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THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
SPECS
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Britain's travel restrictions
- A negative test 2 days before flying
- Complete passenger locator form
- Book a post-arrival PCR test
- Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
- 11 countries on red list quarantine