Almost exactly four years to the day since former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner stood in the lobby of the Baur au Lac hotel and warned FIFA a "football tsunami" was about to hit it, his words have finally came true.
CONCACAF's congress witnessed an outburst of support for incumbent Sepp Blatter.
Slush fund allegedly used to buy votes for the World Cup, claims report
The news comes as little surprise as Sepp Blatter had dropped strong hints he would stand again and if he sees out his potential four-year term he will be 83 by the time of the next planned election in 2019.
World soccer's governing body, FIFA, is expected to pass wide-ranging reforms at a Congress in Zurich next Friday, when a new president will also be elected.
An appeal by former FIFA president Sepp Blatter against a six-year ban from all soccer-related activities will be heard at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on August 25, CAS said on its website on Friday.
'I am seeking the presidency of FIFA because I believe it is time to shift the focus away from administrative controversy and back to sport' 'The world game deserves a world-class governing body -- an International Federation that is a service organisation and a model of ethics, transparency and good governance'
A defiant FIFA President Sepp Blatter declared there was no moving the 2022 World Cup form Qatar, despite widespread concerns about the bidding process that took the tournament to the Middle East for the first time.
UEFA president Michel Platini has said he intends to ignore FIFA requests and not return a luxury watch valued at 25,000 Swiss francs ($26,600), given to him by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF).
A Swiss national who has run soccer's powerful governing body for the past 17 years, 79-year-old FIFA boss Sepp Blatter has now for the first time become the focus of a criminal investigation.
The German Football Association (DFB) has found no indication of wrongdoing in the process of winning the right to host 2006 World Cup, it said on Friday after an internal investigation was completed.
Here is a look at how foreign media has reacted to this news.
World soccer's governing body FIFA will proceed with an election to pick a new president on Friday to replace the disgraced Sepp Blatter and vote on a set of reforms aimed at restoring its credibility after the worst graft scandal in its history.
Swiss police raided the headquarters of the European soccer body UEFA on Wednesday to gather information about a contract signed by Gianni Infantino, now head of the global soccer body FIFA, that was reported in the Panama Papers.
The United States Soccer Federation said in a statement on the new charges that its hosting of the 2016 Copa America Centenario tournament would go ahead as planned.
Esther Staubli is set to become the first female referee to officiate a match at the ongoing FIFA Under-17 World Cup 2017.
Switzerland's Federal Office of Justice (FOJ) named the men as Alfredo Hawit of Honduras, acting president of the CONCACAF federation and a FIFA vice-president, and Juan Angel Napout of Paraguay, head of the South American football federation CONMEBOL. CONCACAF administers football in North and Central America and the Caribbean.
The Iraq Football Association (IFA) pledged their support for Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein in next month's FIFA presidential election.
History is not likely to be so kind to the 79-year-old Swiss, who only recently compared himself to a mountain goat that keeps "going and going and going and cannot be stopped." Instead, his name is likely to be associated with the succession of corruption scandals which occurred on his watch.
Swiss prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation into Jerome Valcke, the banned former FIFA secretary general, and Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the chief executive of Qatar's beIN Media, over World Cup broadcasting deals.
England's failed bid to host the 2018 World Cup "was by far the strongest contender", FIFA official said.
Football legend Pele described the FIFA corruption scandal as a "shame", but made it clear that the reputation of the game was not tarnished.
The spotlight at next week's FIFA Congress will fall on the presidential election - but the real key to the future of football's beleaguered governing body is embedded in a document with the unglamorous title 'Draft statutes - Congress 2016'.
"A clean break from the past is essential for FIFA to climb out of the toxic pit which continues to produce serious accusations of corrupt behaviour on almost a daily basis," FIFPro said in a statement.
Despite widespread speculation that FIFA will vote to switch the dates of the 2022 World Cup on Friday, soccer's world governing body will probably delay making a decision and instead set up a task force to analyse the huge implications of moving the tournament from the searing heat of the Middle East summer.
There was no immediate response to a request for comment from Eto'o, the Cameroon Football Federation nor any immediate comment from Qatar's Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, which organised the World Cup.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter began his fifth term at the helm of football's governing body on Saturday facing the daunting task of restoring public faith in an organisation tainted by allegations of corruption and deeply divided over his re-election.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field on Thursday
Running highlights from FIFA's congress. World soccer's governing body has voted on a series of reforms and will elect a new president later on Friday (all times GMT): 13.30 The voting process is proving a long, drawn out affair. After an hour's voting, we have crawled to L for Latvia with little to get excited about apart from the brief appearance of Davor Suker, Golden Boot winner as the top scorer at the 1998 World Cup, as he cast Croatia's vote. Time then for a reminder that for a candidate to be elected in the first round, he must obtain at least 138 votes, two-thirds of the 207 votes cast. If this does not happen, a second round is held. This time, a simple majority -- 104 votes, which represents more than 50 percent of the votes -- is sufficient for a candidate to be elected. If no candidate gets that majority, the one with fewest votes will be eliminated and a new round will be held. This continues until one candidate obtains a majority. 12.45. Having begun his speech by promising to "die with my boots on", Sexwale ends it by withdrawing from the race, "I have got a surprise for you. My campaign ends today and I suspend my participation. With only four people it is your problem now." Markus Kattner, FIFA general secretary then reminds delegates of the voting procedure, reminding them not to photograph their ballot papers.
The Arab region squandered the chance to help elect their first FIFA president because their two candidates failed to cooperate, leaving the door open for Swiss Gianni Infantino to triumph on Friday, Arab soccer chiefs and pundits said.
Summary of all that transpired on and off the football field
Less than a week after FIFA set up a task force to look into when the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar can be held, English FA chairman Greg Dyke said it will never take place in the searing heat of the Middle East summer.
Meet the men who shall face off against FIFA president Sepp Blatter
This and more from the happenings in the world of football.
News that transpired on and off the football field.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter is a mere servant at the service of football, he said on Friday as he re-stated his intention to run for a fifth mandate in next May's election.
The Davis Cup will remain an annual tournament despite persistent complaints from some players that it over-burdens an already-crowded schedule, the head of the sport's governing body said on Tuesday.
UEFA elects a new president on Wednesday whose main task will be to stop what European officials say is an inexorable slide towards a breakaway football Super League open only to wealthy clubs such as Real Madrid and Manchester City.
The 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the only major scheduled football event left unchanged after this year's calendar was wrecked by the coronavirus, has become the focus of fresh FIFA corruption allegations after the release of a new US Department of Justice indictment. According to the prosecutors, representatives working for Russia and Qatar bribed FIFA executive committee officials to swing votes in the crucial decision of world football's governing body.
Angel Maria Villar, the interim UEFA President, and General Secretary Theodore Theodoridis are bookmaker William Hill's favourites at 6-1 to replace Michel Platini as head of the European soccer's governing body.
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