World Cup 'hindered by democracy'



ZURICH // Too much democracy can be a hindrance when organising a World Cup, said the Fifa secretary general Jerome Valcke.

Mr Valcke said one of the reasons Fifa had encountered difficulties in organising the 2014 World Cup in Brazil was due to the various levels of government in the South American nation.

He expected fewer problems for Russia 2018 with its president, Vladimir Putin.

"I will say something that is crazy, but less democracy is sometimes better for organising a World Cup," he told a symposium on the tournament.

"When you have a very strong head of state who can decide, as maybe Putin can do in 2018 ... that is easier for us organisers than a country such as Germany ... where you have to negotiate at different levels.

"The main fight we have [is] when we enter a country where the political structure is divided, as it is in Brazil, into three levels: the federal level, the state level and the city level.

"[There are] different people, different movements, different interests and it's quite difficult to organise a World Cup in such conditions."

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