布拉特 美國調查FIFA是因爲輸不起

Sepp Blatter believes he would still be in charge of world football if he had succeeded with a secret plan to award the World Cup to the US.

塞普布拉特(Sepp Blatter)認爲，如果當初他成功實施了一項祕密計劃、將世界盃(World Cup)主辦權授予美國，現在他或許仍是世界足球的掌舵者。

The 79-year-old blamed American and Swiss authorities for forcing him to give up power by arresting several senior Fifa officials and threatening to prosecute Fifa as a mafia organisation.

79歲的布拉特指責美國和瑞士當局通過逮捕幾名國際足聯(Fifa)高官並威脅要把國際足聯當作黑手黨組織起訴，來迫使他放棄權力。

The US had decided to pursue Fifa, he claimed, after it was beaten in the race for the 2022 World Cup by Qatar. “It took a political dimension,” he said. “I am looking now to see what were the political reasons. The easiest thing would be to say [they are] bad losers.”

他聲稱，美國在2022年世界盃主辦權的爭奪中輸給卡塔爾後，已決意對國際足聯展開調查。他說：“這事有政治方面的因素。目前，我正在猜測背後的政治原因是什麼。最簡單的答案可能是（他們）輸不起。”

In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr Blatter said there had been a secret deal between Fifa’s top leaders to rig the vote.

在接受英國《金融時報》採訪時，布拉特表示，國際足聯高官之間曾達成一項祕密協議來操縱投票。

“The solution that has been agreed, not in writing, but it has been agreed [was] let’s go to the two superpowers in the vote for the World Cup: let’s go to Russia and let’s go to the United States,” he said. “And would this have been realised as it was foreseen, then I don’t know where I would be now. I would be on an island (on holiday)!”

“達成的解決方案雖然不是書面的，但確實得到了大家的同意，即在世界盃主辦權表決中把票投給兩個超級大國：投給俄羅斯，投給美國。”他說。“若此方案如預想的那樣實現，那我不知道我現在會在哪裏，也許會在某個島上（度假）！”

Asked if Fifa’s full executive committee had decided on the deal, he said: “It was not a decision of the Exco. It was behind the scenes when we also said let us do two World Cups, let’s go to big markets. There was not a meeting where we came together. It was diplomatically arranged.”

在被問及是否國際足聯的整個執委會都已決定執行這一方案時，他說：“這不是執委會的決定。這事發生在幕後，當時我們還表示要搞兩屆世界盃的投票，要把票投給大市場。我們沒有聚在一起開個會。這事是動用交際手腕安排下的。”

But Mr Blatter said the pact had been disturbed by Michel Platini, head of European football’s governing body, who voted for Qatar together with three of his allies, after an intervention by Nicolas Sarkozy, the then French president.

不過，布拉特表示，這一協議卻被歐洲足聯(UEFA)主席米歇爾渠拉蒂尼(Michel Platini)打亂了。在時任法國總統的尼古拉薩科齊(Nicolas Sarkozy)干預後，普拉蒂尼及其三位盟友把票投給了卡塔爾。

“I found out after having made this, let’s say, gentleman’s agreement where we shall go. Just one week before the election, I got a telephone call from Michel Platini and he said: ‘I am no longer in your picture because I have been told by the head of state that we should consider the situation of France,” said Mr Blatter.

布拉特表示：“我是在達成這個關於我們該把票投給誰的君子協定後才知道此事的。就在投票的一週前，我接到米歇爾渠拉蒂尼的電話，他說：‘我不會照你的設想辦了，因爲國家元首告訴我，我們應該考慮法國的處境。’”

Mr Blatter said he did not know why Mr Sarkozy had intervened. “I do not know that, I cannot enter into it,” he said. One month after Qatar won the World Cup, it said it was evaluating the purchase of French Rafale jet fighters to upgrade its fleet.

布拉特表示，他不知道薩科齊爲什麼要出手干預。在贏得世界盃主辦權一個月後，卡塔爾表示，它正在評估是否購買法國的陣風(Rafale)戰鬥機，以升級本國的戰鬥機羣。