Joseph 'Sepp'
Blatter was the eighth president of FIFA, world football's governing body, and
undoubtedly one of its most controversial figures.
He was re-elected for a fifth term last Friday but has now said
he will resign amid a corruption scandal that
has rocked the organisation.
Seven senior FIFA officials were arrested last week in Zurich on
a US warrant ahead of the FIFA congress.
The 79-year-old was born in Switzerland and graduated from
university with a business and economics degree.
Among the jobs he has held were head of public relations of the
Valaisan Tourist Board, the canton of Switzerland in which he was born, and
general secretary of the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation.
One of his stranger roles
was as president of the World Society of Friends of Suspenders - a male group
that wanted women to give up tights and return to wearing stockings and
suspenders.
Blatter moved into the world of football in 1973 when he became
president of the semi-professional Zurich Brown Shirts.
He joined FIFA as technical director in 1975 and became
general secretary in 1981, an office he held until he was elected president in
1998.
Blatter won the top job after a fierce contest with Lennard
Johansson, the then-president of Europe's governing body UEFA.
One of his campaign promises was to take the World Cup to Africa
- a pledge he fulfilled in 2010 when the tournament was held in South Africa.
But on
taking over the presidency, one of his first moves was to take legal action
against the author of a book claiming corruption during the campaign.
His next election, in 2002,
was also marred by accusations of bribery and financial mismanagement - claims
Blatter denied and of which he was subsequently cleared by the Swiss
authorities.
Questions about his conduct have not been confined to his
electioneering. His lengthy reign at the summit of football has been dogged by
controversy.
Blatter was criticised for his suggestion in 2004 that female
footballers should wear skimpier outfits to help sell the women's game.
Two years later he was absent from the podium when the winners
of the 2006 World Cup in Germany were presented with their trophy. Reports
suggested he was annoyed Italy had won rather than France but he insisted it
was because he was afraid of being jeered.
His careless use of language got him into trouble in 2009 when
he said Manchester United should let Cristiano Ronaldo move to Real Madrid,
referring to the "modern slavery" of footballers.
At the
2010 World Cup he attracted further criticism when he laughed out loud in
public at a request from Ireland's FA to allow it to qualify after a
controversial hand ball incident with France.
But it has been the
corruption allegations that have really brought calls for an end to his reign
over world football.
Even before the latest arrests, Fifa's ethics committee had in
2011 suspended Asian Football Confederation chief Mohamed Bin Hammam and Fifa
vice-president Jack Warner amid bribery allegations.
While at the South Africa World Cup, Match Event Services, the
company in charge of hotel room bookings for fans, was accused of charging
excessive prices.
The company was a subsidiary of Match Hospitality, the worldwide
rights holder of FIFA's hospitality programme and in turn part-owned by the
Swiss-based marketing firm Infront Sports and Media.
The
president and chief executive officer of the parent company was Blatter's
nephew, Philippe Blatter.
The president and chief executive officer of the parent company
was Blatter's nephew, Philippe Blatter.
