The Fédération Internationale de Football Association is an organization which describes itself as an international governing body of association football, fútsal, beach soccer, and efootball. FIFA is responsible for the organization of football's major international tournaments, notably the World Cup which commenced in 1930 and the Women's World Cup which commenced in 1991.
Joseph "Sepp" Blatter is a Swiss football administrator who was the eighth President of the FIFA from 1998 to 2015. He is currently serving a six-year ban from participating in FIFA activities.
Michel François Platini is a French former football player, manager and administrator. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Platini won the Ballon d'Or three times, in 1983, 1984 and 1985, and came sixth in the FIFA Player of the Century vote. In recognition of his achievements, he was named a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur in 1985 and became an Officier in 1998. As the president of UEFA in 2015 he was banned from football, over ethics violations.
The G-14 was an organisation of European football clubs that existed between 2000 and 2008. It consisted of 14 European top class teams initially, later expanded to 18. It was disbanded in 2008 and was replaced by the European Club Association representing over 100 clubs, in a deal reached with UEFA and FIFA.
Jean-Marie Faustin Godefroid "João" de Havelange was a Brazilian lawyer, businessman, athlete and centenarian who served as the seventh President of FIFA from 1974 to 1998. His tenure as President is the second longest in FIFA's history, behind only that of Jules Rimet. He received the title of Honorary President when leaving office, but resigned in April 2013. He succeeded Stanley Rous and was succeeded by Sepp Blatter. João Havelange served as a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 1963 to 2011. He was the longest-serving active member upon his resignation. In July 2012 a Swiss prosecutor's report revealed that, during his tenure on FIFA's Executive Committee, he and his son-in-law Ricardo Teixeira took more than $41 million in bribes in connection with the award of World Cup marketing rights.
The Albanian Football Association is the governing body of football in Albania. The association is based in Tirana, Albania. The association organizes the national football leagues of the Albanian Superliga, the First Division, the Second Division, the Third Division, the Albanian Cup and Supercup. Albania women's national football team, Albanian women's football championship, and the Albanian Women's Cup are also overseen. The association also coordinates the activities of the Albania national football team and the Albania national youth football teams such as Under-21, Under-20, Under-19, Under-18, Under-17, Under-16 and Under-15.
Issa Hayatou is a Cameroonian former athlete and sports executive. He served as the acting FIFA president until 26 February 2016 as the previous president, Sepp Blatter, was banned from all football-related activities in 2015 as a part of the FIFA corruption investigation of 2015. He was the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) between 1988 and 2017. In 2002, he ran for president of FIFA but was defeated by Blatter. He is also a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Jérôme Valcke is a French football administrator, best known as the former Secretary General of FIFA. He was fired on 13 January 2016 as a result of allegations arising from the ongoing 2015 FIFA corruption case.
Dalga Arena is a multi-use stadium in Mardakan settlement of Baku, Azerbaijan. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 6,500 people and opened by Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini on 6 June 2011.
The 61st FIFA Congress was held between 31 May and 1 June 2011 at the Hallenstadion in Zurich, Switzerland. FIFA is the governing body of world association football, and the congress is the annual meeting of FIFA's supreme legislative body. This is the eighth congress to be held in Zurich, and the first since 2007. After an opening ceremony and a reminder of FIFA events and activities in 2010, the second day witnessed decisions taken, and the unveiling of the 2010 financial results. The opening ceremony was presented by Melanie Winiger, and featured singer Grace Jones, hammered dulcimer player Nicolas Senn, and juggler Alan Šulc.
Michael van Praag is a Dutch football administrator and former referee. He has been President of the Royal Dutch Football Association since 27 August 2008 and a Vice President of the UEFA since 30 June 2015. Van Praag previously served as Chairman of AFC Ajax from 1989 until 2003.
In 2015, U.S. federal prosecutors disclosed cases of corruption by officials and associates connected with the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the governing body of association football, futsal and beach soccer.
The 2016 FIFA Extraordinary Congress was held at the Hallenstadion in Zürich, Switzerland, on 26 February 2016. This special session of the FIFA Congress, called as a result of the 2015 FIFA corruption case, included the passage of a major statutory reforms proposal as well as the election of Gianni Infantino to replace Sepp Blatter as the President of FIFA.
Baku Olympic Stadium, is a 68,700-seat stadium, designed and constructed to meet the international standards for stadiums set by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). It is the largest stadium in Azerbaijan.
Hans-Joachim Eckert is a German jurist. He was Presiding Judge of the business court division at the Regional Court Munich I from October 2005 to July 2015. Between 17 July 2012 and 10 May 2017, he was the first chairman of the Adjudicatory Chamber of the FIFA Ethics Committee.
