Brazilian footballing great Romário has delivered a withering criticism of FIFA President Sepp Blatter, as well as general secretary Jérôme Valcke.
Appearing on ESPN Brasil's 'Bate Bola' show, the two-time World Cup winner called Blatter a "corrupt son of a bitch", while Valcke was referred to as "one of the biggest racketeers in world sport".
“For the history of this guy (Valcke), he is one of the biggest racketeers in world sport. He did blackmail with FIFA’s president (Blatter), who is a thief, corrupt and a son of a bitch. Sorry for that expression, but this is what we coexist with.
"Valcke even said that the World Cup in Brazil will be one of the worst in the history of FIFA.
“This guy comes here in my country says these speeches and everybody claps their hands and all is alright.”
The 48-year-old continued by decrying the vast sums of money that Brazil has spent on hosting the tournament. He said:“We have spent an absurd amount for the World Cup and going forward it will get even worse. Brazil has a lot of thieves, that’s the truth.
“I have spoken, and I will repeat here. Now we have to cheer for Brazil to win on the field because it would be perfect for football but off the pitch we’ve already lost and there is no way to reserve it.”
In 2010, Romário was elected to the national Chamber of Deputies as a Brazilian Socialist Party member for Rio de Janeiro. He has denounced the 2014 World Cup as a medium for corruption and money laundering.
Let's not forget that he was an absolute joy on the pitch, too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-PS_wM1Leg
H/T, translation: sambafoot.com
