Editing Sepp Blatter (section)

=== Allegations of financial mismanagement ===
Amidst internal divisions, FIFA's secretary-general Blatter's deputy and former protégé Michel Zen-Ruffinen drew up a 30-page dossier outlining allegations of financial mismanagement within the organisation.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/1967384.stm |title=Blatter could face corruption probe |work=BBC Sport |date=4 May 2002 |access-date=19 February 2007 |archive-date=4 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091004005144/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/1967384.stm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,238575,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080217055356/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,238575,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 February 2008 |title=Last Man Standing |first=Jack |last=Mikrut |magazine=Time |date=19 May 2002}}</ref> The dossier alleged that the collapse of FIFA's marketing partner ISL had led to losses of up to 100 million US dollars under Blatter's management.

The allegations were backed by Johansson,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/1974333.stm |title=Fifa sues Blatter |work=BBC Sport |date=8 May 2002 |access-date=19 February 2007 |archive-date=7 February 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110207144354/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/1974333.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> and the dossier was handed to the Swiss authorities, but they cleared Blatter of any wrongdoing and FIFA had to pay all the costs.<ref>[http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/social_affairs/detail/Blatter_cleared_of_corruption.html?siteSect=201&sid=1495711&cKey=1039003200000 Blatter cleared of corruption] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930222420/http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/social_affairs/detail/Blatter_cleared_of_corruption.html?siteSect=201&sid=1495711&cKey=1039003200000 |date=30 September 2007 }}, swissinfo.org, 4 December 2002.</ref> An internal investigation within FIFA was halted by Blatter because members of it broke confidentiality agreements.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/1926839.stm |title=Blatter suspends FIFA investigation |work=BBC Sport |date=12 April 2002 |access-date=19 February 2007 |archive-date=13 February 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080213153921/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/1926839.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> This questionable behaviour led him to remove Zen-Ruffinen from office immediately before the [[2002 FIFA World Cup]].

In April 2012 the Council of Europe published a report which stated it would be "difficult to imagine" that Blatter would have been unaware of "significant sums" paid to unnamed FIFA officials by ISSM/ISL in connection with lucrative contracts for World Cup television rights and the subsequent bankruptcy and collapse of ISL in 2001.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2012/apr/23/fifa-sepp-blatter-isl-bribery-case?newsfeed=true| title=Council of Europe criticises Sepp Blatter's handling of ISL bribery case| agency=Press Association| work=The Guardian| date=23 April 2012| location=London| access-date=13 December 2016| archive-date=10 May 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510215232/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2012/apr/23/fifa-sepp-blatter-isl-bribery-case?newsfeed=true| url-status=live}}</ref> The Council of Europe report will be considered by over 300 parliamentarians from the 47 Council of Europe member states in Strasbourg.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://edition.cnn.com/2012/04/24/sport/football/football-blatter-corruption-report/index.html| title=Council of Europe report criticizes Blatter in ISL corruption case| author=Paul Gittings| publisher=CNN| date=24 April 2012| access-date=8 May 2012| archive-date=28 April 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120428105148/http://edition.cnn.com/2012/04/24/sport/football/football-blatter-corruption-report/index.html| url-status=live}}</ref>