Former FIFA official Miguel Maduro meeting Culture, Media & Sport select committee
Tuesday 12 September 2017 16:22, UK
A former top FIFA official is flying to London to meet the UK Government's Culture, Media & Sport select committee to discuss his time at world football's governing body.
Professor Miguel Maduro, who is a former FIFA Governance committee chairman, is expected to arrive at Westminster on Wednesday morning where he will talk about his time working under new FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
Maduro was controversially axed from his role in May, after eight months at the helm, having been asked by FIFA to help rebuild its tarnished image.
However Maduro, who is also a former Portuguese Government Minister, was removed by Infantino at a FIFA Congress in Bahrain during May.
At the time, Infantino implied that the decision to remove Maduro was to bring 'greater integrity' to FIFA and, as Maduro was one of many Europeans chairing committees within the organisation, there had been accusations from Africa and Asia that FIFA was failing to represent them.
He was replaced by Indian High Court Justice Mukul Mudgal.
However, an alternative view from supporters of the sacked official suggest that FIFA's decision to remove him was more to do with Maduro's efforts in trying to block the re-election of Russian deputy prime minister Vitaly Mutko.
Wednesday's planned session forms part of the Committee's inquiry into sports governance. In July 2015, the Committee agreed to hold an inquiry into the future of FIFA, and to follow up the previous Committee's work on the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals to Russia and Qatar respectively.
Former FA chairman Greg Dyke, along with a number of sponsors, have previously given evidence to the Committee which has also heard from the Serious Fraud Office and Lord Goldsmith QC, who was also a member of FIFA's independent governance committee.
The Select Committee, chaired by Damian Collins MP, is keen to hear Maduro's thoughts on how FIFA is reforming in the wake of the scandal that forced the departure of its former President Sepp Blatter and whether new incumbent Infantino is doing enough to tackle governance concerns.
