In some ways, you almost have to hand it to Ken Bates. He is so obstinate in his behaviour, so apparently appalled by the concept of acting in a way that is half-way reasonable, that it almost appears that his self-appointed role in life is to act in a way that nobody with any scruples could even try to defend.

Image by footyfactor.com

What happens when Sepp Blatter and his cronies see millions of dollars and plenty of prestige in danger of disappearing? They change the system.

That's the conclusion drawn by many after FIFA last night announced they were altering their planned World Cup 2010 qualification play-offs system to seed teams based on their FIFA world rankings, a decision which clearly favours the traditionally strong nations.

Stay away from CFR Cluj owner Arpad Paszkany.
Recently he was charged with blackmail and supporting a criminal group.
And he "financed the media group Gazeta from 2004 to 2006 to promote his business interests and compromise rival companies."
Those media groups pretty much trashed whoever he wanted.

So the favoured Western Sydney bid has collapsed.
In all probability, this is good news for the A-League. It's surely inconceivable that the FFA will consider the nebulous bid fronted by a Socceroo captain who can't even find a club of his own at the moment; Canberra is the only realistic option if they are going to expand to twelve teams in 2010/11.

Ever wondered what it's like to be part of world football's ultimate elite jetset, FIFA's Executive Committee? As I mentioned last week, all you have to do to find out is go and visit the amazing photo blog by FIFA Executive Committee member Chuck Blazer, the Executive Vice President of the US Soccer Federation whose favourite footballing memory is Mexico winning the Confederations Cup in 1999.

Photo by menosultra on Flickr.

Photo by menosultra on Flickr.

Related posts:

1. The Draw for the 2010 World Cup, Politically Explosive Ties The draw's in the bag, and obviously as an England fan, being drawn against Croatia again has just made my...
2. World Cup Draw Reaction: Anglo-American Delight Everybody's happy!

Everybody's happy! In their own unique ways, that is.

One thing's for sure: the England-USA game will be the most hyped and probably the most watched in American soccer history, particularly with a prime Saturday spot on ABC.

More reaction to the draw coming shortly.

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A curious but pertinent fact, which has been commented on elsewhere: the 2010 World Cup will be the first since 1974 not to feature a single team from the western half of Asia.
And it is that grim statistic for the Gulf nations which is surely behind the latest piece of blackmail from the AFC regarding Wellington Phoenix's participation in the A-League.