Pre-match: 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup Host Selection - December 2

You should read up on the "transparency index of countries". Russia is right down with Qatar at the bottom end of it, that is they are NOT transparent, nor have a strong "rule-of-law" culture & practice. FWIW Australia is cleaner than the USA. Period.

See: http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010/results

 

Well, of course it's easier to keep 20 or 30 million people in line than to keep 100 million (or 300 million) following the law. Germany, UK and USA are doing fine, considering their population.

 

Whoosh!!!!!

We Aussies don't feel we are, and aren't, "kept in line".

So their (Germany, UK and USA .... Canada even) level of transparency is OK, per million head of population, because they have more millions?

FWIW it's not about size but about the population's attitude, morals & culture, especially wrt rule-of-law & corruption.

 

Which is ironic considering their start. Of course Georgia (USA) started the same way.

 

HUGE fail there bud. Quatar is ranked at 19, several spaces ahead of the US, and only a couple points behind AUS.

That index is based on perceived corruption. I think that smaller countries, and counties that have a strong understanding of the "right way to do things" ie common culture, will score higher, all things being equal, than those that are more heterogeneous.

 

Transparency International's index gives Qatar a fairly good rating. I don't think the emphasis should be on (perceived) corruption figures.

Freedom House and Human Rights Watch give much less flattering figures about Qatar. I've used Freedom House in the past as a source for studies on democratization, government accountability, and human rights...It is fairly reputable and highly respected in the academic community.

FIFA has launched several prominent campaigns against discrimination in football. The most notable, of course, is the "Say No to Racism" campaign that was started for the 2006 World Cup and continues today. FIFA has even institutionalized a special "Anti-Descrimination Day." Per the FIFA website:

Qatar's selection therefore runs counter to FIFA's stated anti-descrimination initiatives. If FIFA wanted to develop the game in the Islamic world, it should have urged other, more progressive countries to submit bids.

On a related note, has anyone heard about the Barcelona shirt sponsorship deal? Its almost laughable that Unicef will be sharing shirt space with the royal-family sponsored Qatar Foundation.

Bottom line: In these instances, the executives of FIFA and Barca are activists until the role no longer benefits them. Overlooking the corruption allegations, the hypocrisy of these organizations should be our biggest complaint.

 

But in line with their actions in eradicating it.

 

It's common sense.

Fewer people are easier to govern. Easier to educate, easier to have access to health care and police, easier to become uniform in their social and ethical mores.

Canada and Australia can be directly compared. Similar cultures, small nations (we got 30 mill., you got over 20 mill.). For all the multiculturalism in both, there is a solid majority, sharing values, language (almost...) and religion (or lack of, we're very secular, just like you are).

USA cannot be compared to either of us. We're tiny compared to them. They got 300 million people. They have to provide hospitals, police, schools, and a certain sense of uniformity to 10 times the number of people we got. That is a MASSIVE challenge.

 

How does Switzerland rate as "transparent"? 8.7 vice 7.1 for the USA?
I'm not a big fan of the USA business and government communities, but Switzerland? Damn, that was where I was going to hide my kick-back moola from the 2031 WC bid vote I am hoping to sell.

 

Lol...the politicians from New Jersey have screwed up the rating for the US.

 

http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/15/qa-fifas-chuck-blazer/

 

Ian Holloway for FIFA President!

Sack Sepp