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Summary Sepp Blatter faced sharp backlash following his comments downplaying problem of racism in football.
With FIFA still reeling from corruption allegations, Sepp Blatter faced a sharp backlash and calls for his resignation Thursday following his comments downplaying the problem of racism in football.The FIFA president provoked outrage by suggesting in television interviews Wednesday that on-field racial abuse could be settled by a handshake and quickly forgotten.British Prime Minister David Cameron said Thursday that Blatters suggestion was appalling, while the countrys sports minister called for Blatter to go for the sake of the game. The European Union described his remedy for racism as completely unacceptable.Former England and Manchester United striker Andrew Cole wrote in a newspaper column that Blatter was clueless and an out-of-touch buffoon.Blatters latest gaffe follows previous verbal missteps such as suggesting that women players should wear tighter shorts, and gay fans should refrain from having sex at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar where homosexual acts are illegal.Blatter managed to further discredit FIFA just weeks after he won some praise for promising to confront allegations of financial wrongdoing by senior colleagues as part of wide-ranging reforms following damaging allegations of bribery, vote-rigging and ticket scams.The latest gaffe by the 75-year-old Swiss official sparked a furor in England, where authorities are investigating two allegations of racial abuse involving Liverpool and Chelsea players in Premier League games.This is the latest episode that calls into question whether this man should be the head of world football, British Sports Minister Hugh Robertson said. For the sake of the game, he should go.
