A year later, during the Congress in Tokyo,
on the eve of the 1964 Olympics, a counter proposal co-sponsored by
Ethiopia, Egypt and then new member Ghana, calling for the expulsion of
Apartheid South Africa, surprisingly won the majority vote for the
reduced, but equally effective suspension of Apartheid,
reversing the 1963 decision. Thereafter, ceaseless efforts by Sir Stanley
to change this new status were successfully blocked by Africa, with
Yidnekatchew in the forefront.
Although the protracted battle on the issue of Apartheid had caused
numerous disagreements in successive F.I.F.A. Congresses; none came near
to a breaking point as the scheme encouraged by Sir Stanley Rous, to
establish a separate F.I.F.A. recognized regional Southern African
Confederation, consisting mainly, of South Africa, Rhodesia, Mauritania,
Madagascar, Botswana and Malawi, with the obvious
intent of facilitating unchallenged readmission of Apartheid.
African Football leaders came across copies of the confidential
communications on the issue and made it clear to Sir Stanley during an
informal discussion just before the opening of the 1966 Congress in
London, that all African Associations would walkout of the Conference
Hall, if F.I.F.A. was not to withdraw its unofficial support to the
divisive establishment of two independent Confederations in one
continent. In a compromise last minute arrangement Sir Stanley
retreated, avoiding the eminent walkout by all African Associations from
this Congress and the ensuing publicity it would have provoked. This was
a point in time when F.I.F.A./C.A.F. relations were strained to the
limit, subsequent to the already declared African boycott of the 1966
World Cup hosted by England, refusing to share a single place with Asia.
This was why, North Korea, winners of the Asian qualifiers got automatic
spot in the finals, representing the two continents.
The other notable
contentious issue in successive meetings was the African demand for the
suspension of the rebel Regime of Rhodesia. The African Football
Confederation was again the first International sports institution to
expel Rhodesia from membership, only four days after the unilateral
declaration of independence by the rebel regime of Ian Smith on 11
November 1965. Five years later, the effort to expel Rhodesia from
F.I.F.A., was intensified, therefore, to the Congress in Mexico City,1970;
Yidnekatchew Tessema was accompanied by renowned Ethiopian lawyer,
and member of the Executive Committee of the National
Federation, Tefferi
Behane, whose expertise was very useful in the preparation of a strong
legal case against Rhodesia's continued F.I.F.A. membership. African
National Associations threatened to walk out, if the congress did not
endorse the well substantiated Ethiopian argument. Concerned with the
possibility of a last minute African boycott, Mexico, together with its
supporters voted in favor, thereby, ensuring Rhodesia's suspension by a
large majority vote.
At this same Congress in Mexico, Ethiopia
proposed that F.I.F.A. should collect gate income percentage from matches
between the four British associations, so long as these Associations enjoy
the privileges of four votes in the Congresses and four representations in
the World Cups. This motion was defeated by 34/33 votes. Two years later,
during the 1972 congress in Paris, the same motion on the four British
Associations, presented by Uruguay, was adopted unanimously. Referring to
the extremes with which the Congress handled the same issue, Yidnekatchew
later remarked:- " Sometimes it is not the idea that is rejected, but, the
author"!!
Despite all the
previous resolutions by F.I.F.A. Congresses on South Africa and Rhodesia,
and especially the 1966 London agreement between Sir Stanley and the
African delegation, another provocative letter, officially dispatched by F.I.F.A.
on 06 September 1971, to Mr. G.H.L. kerr of the Rhodesian Football
Association was discovered at a much latter date. Important points in this
letter read as follows; " It does not seem to me to be possible for
F.I.F.A. to invite member countries in Southern Africa to join a new
group. The African Confederation would object, I am sure, to this proposal
and to the loss of some of its members, especially when they are being
wooed to join their votes to those of South America. This was obvious to
me on my recent visit to South America. The only way in which your
proposal might be implemented would be for the National Associations you
name to resign their membership with F.I.F.A. and form a bloc for the main
purpose of International matches among themselves. You may know that the
South African Football Association contemplated making a similar proposal
a few years ago...... I think you know that both he (referring to then
F.I.F.A. Secretary General, Dr. Kaiser) and I are anxious to settle this
matter in your favor, but the bloc system is at work and must be
combated". The contents of this letter prompted a
strong protest from the Confederation's President Yidnekatchew Tessema at
the 1974 Congress in Frankfurt; though Sir Stanley apologized on the spot; it was too late to make any difference on
the outcome of the election for the Presidency. Africa's vote at this
Congress, was decisive in the 68 / 52 final victory for the Brazilian Joao
Havellange, who become the first non European President of F.I.F.A..
To the dismay of
Sir Stanley Rous, this Congress also adopted 76 votes
to 10 against,
Yidnekatchew's motion; which stipulated automatic expulsion of any
association representing a Country that has instituted Ethnic, Racial
and/or Religious Discrimination in its territory,
thereby clarifying the
ambiguity in the F.I.F.A. statutes. Yidnekatchew never agreed with the
re-vote allowed by the new President Dr. Joao Havellange in Montreal two years later; he used to say; " Apartheid was
automatically expelled with the adoption of the clear cut law in Frankfurt
1974, therefore the issue was no more one of differing opinions, subject
to a further re-vote in the Congress". Any ways, the questionable
procedure in Montreal, 1976, did nothing more than reconfirm the Frankfurt
resolution to expel Apartheid. The China Taiwan issue was the only notable
item on the agenda, that did not win the required 3/4th majority in
Frankfurt 1974. Yidnekatchew argued F.I.F.A. had no right to exclude the
U.N. member, Peoples Republic of China, in favor of obvious provocation
from the part of Taiwan, but the vote result, 58 for to 48 against, was
not enough to achieve the readmission of the most populated Nation on the
planet. All in all; the Congress in Frankfurt 1974
should always be remembered as the most important milestone in the history
of World Football. F.I.F.A.'s long tradition of tolerating Racial
Discrimination, was brought to an end at this Congress. The F.I.F.A of
absolute European domination was also transformed into a more
participatory global institution at the historic congress in
Frankfurt,1974.
It must be underlined here, that the
differences between Sir Stanley and Yidnekatchew Tessema, in this chapter
of the history of F.I.F.A., were never personal. The two were simply the
representatives of the irreconcilable views held in the World of
Football at the time. Sir Stanley was defending the European pioneers that
wished to maintain the status quo, while Yidnekatchew Tessema represented
the new member associations, struggling for their rightful places in the
World of Football. Likewise, as reflected in the final
out come of the votes, in Frankfurt 1974; the election of Dr. Joao
Havellange was more about differences between the pioneers and the new
comers in F.I.F.A. than a power struggle between two
individuals. The partnership of discontented Africa and Latin America on
one side, and the old super power Europe, on the other. Although Sir
Stanley, was admittedly a knowledgeable leader of World Football, who had
given a lot to the development of F.I.F.A. in the thirteen years of his Presidency, he had
obviously underestimated the consequences of his continued support to
Apartheid. Africa, with Yidnekatchew Tessema in the
forefront, had for years appealed with him to expel Apartheid South
Africa from F.I.F.A., as well as facilitate increased representation of the
continent, in the F.I.F.A. World Cups, in the Executive Committee and in
the Standing Committees.
Contrary to the
widespread accusation by some European media at the time, that African delegates
had sold votes or had been deceived by the Brazilian Dr. Havellange; the
representatives of Africa had simply voted in the interest of the
Continent. The fact that only eight years before this election, Africa had
boycotted the 1966 World Cup in England on account of Sir Stanley's
decision that Africa and Asia be represented by a single team, and
F.I.F.A.'s subsequent attempt to penalize the African countries that
refused to accept this unfair decision, can not and
should not be belittled to unproven allegations that one or many African
representatives were bribed or deceived by Dr. Havellange. The
unsubstantiated allegations of corruption, may have temporarily served as a
face-saving way out for the major papers and the journalists that were
themselves far from neutral on the issues
of those days. In fact, they had shared and promoted identical views with Sir Stanley
on several occasions before and after this election, justifying the
clandestine efforts to reinstate Apartheid, as well as the continued exclusion
of Africa from the World Cup. A good reminder to this
is, the Sunday Times of London, which printed the following statement by Mr. Brian
Glanville, while African Nations were playing qualification matches for
the Continent's first and single representation in the the Mexico World
Cup of 1970; "It
is quite true that football in countries such as the U.S.A. & Ethiopia
would be encouraged by World Cup participation, but only at the expense of
cheapening the World Cup, a pretty heavy price to pay when this
tournament is, or should be, the very zenith of the International game".
It was exactly this commonly upheld contemptuous view, that infuriated and
motivated the African representatives to vote for change, in Frankfurt 1974.
The same papers and journalists that unduly criticized African
representatives of corruption only for using their votes to pave the way
for the Continent's rightful representation in the World Cup, are today
full of praise for the outstanding performances of the same African
National sides and individual players,
"in the very Zenith of the
International game".
Yidnekatchew Tessema, was a member of the
F.I.F.A. Executive Committee from 1966 to 1972, and the President of the
African Football Confederation from1972 to 1987; it was during his years
in the F.I.F.A. Executive, that he forged an alliance with equally
discontented Latin America in General, and his close friend Dr. Havellange
in particular. I was fortunate to be there, when the alliance with Latin
America was finalized in December 1973. Expulsion of Apartheid South
Africa, the Continent's rightful representation in the World Cup, in the
Executive, and in the permanent commissions of F.I.F.A., as well as
increased technical development assistances to African football, were high
on the agenda of Yidnekatchew Tessema's preconditions in return for the
African support to the Havellange campaign. This mutually beneficial
partnership had permanently changed F.I.F.A. into a
more participatory Global Institution ever-since. Africa's
rightful place in the competitions and the various committees of F.I.F.A.
were gradually, but surely achieved subsequent to this arrangement. The
comprehensive football development project which was to be headed by the
Current F.I.F.A. President Sepp Blatter; and had proved very useful to the
all-round speedy growth of Africa's football, was also a direct result of
the agreements reached during this pre-election politics in Rio 1973. Only
those who are familiar with the way other International Federations, and
especially the International Olympic Committee function until today, would
fully understand the magnitude of the above achievements in F.I.F.A..
At the end of the match, Sir Stanley
accepted the result In the spirit of sportsmanship. Four years later; in
his 1978 autobiography, "Football Worlds; A life time in sport",
he wrote these honest lines about Yidnekatchew Tessema; "The President of the
African Football Confederation, Mr. Tessema, has been working hard to
develop football in the Continent. He had been a F.I.F.A. member and with
his forceful personality he ensured quick progress. Though I had many
differences of opinion with him we maintained a friendly relationship and
I appreciated his driving determination to raise the standard of African
football". The respect was
mutual; on several important occasions thereafter, Yidnekatchew Tessema,
also expressed his high esteem to Sir Stanley's in-depth knowledge of
football matters and his huge contribution to the World of Football. He
also appreciated several skill upgrading courses for Africa which were
organized with the very limited resources available to F.I.F.A., during
the era of Sir Stanley Rous.
Although they differed on many
issues, Sir Stanley and Yidnekatchew shared identical views on the dangers
of excessive commercialization of football, which was to become the order
of the day in post Stanley Rous F.I.F.A..
The above photo shows Sir Stanley and
Yidnekatchew watching a match at the 1982 World Cup in Spain,
coincidentally the next one in Mexico 86 was the last for both of
them.
This chapter of the history of F.I.F.A.; is
discussed in more detail in the book, " The Secret Life of Football", by
Alex Fynn and Lynton Guest with Peter Law; and also in the very
interesting comprehensive film "History of Football - The Beautiful
Game-Volume 6, Africa and A Game For All" by FREMANTLE media.
To:- The F.I.F.A.
of Dr. Joao Havellange
To:- Home page
Yidnekatchew Tessema
