'Is it fair you’re putting sponsors on the spot?' Fifa’s marketing chief hits out at journalists questioning Coca-Cola’s stance on corruption allegations
Fifa’s marketing director Thierry Weil leapt to the defence of World Cup sponsor Coca-Cola following a series of questions from journalists over the drinks giant’s stance on bribery and corruption allegations around the World Cup – saying it was “unfair” of them to put Amber Steele, director of football management at Coca-Cola, on the spot.
Following a panel discussion at The Sports Business conference today, 9 October – which reflected on the Brazil World Cup as well as Fifa’s new sponsorship model – Andrew Warshaw from Inside World Football asked Steele to respond to comments made earlier in the week by Michael Hershman, a former member of Fifa’s independent governance committee.
Hershman is quoted as saying that Fifa “sponsors haven’t put their money where their mouth is.”
Today Steele responded: “Well that’s a little question isn’t it? I’m probably not the best person to answer that 100 per cent but I will tell you that we’ve had all kinds of conversations with Fifa. We see them as a partner and we talk to each other about the good and the bad.
“I feel very confident that Fifa understands our views and what we think of the situation as a whole,” she continued, adding that “together” they will work through “the highs and the lows”.
Immediately following Warshaw's question, Richard Conway from the BBC questioned Steele on whether she wanted to see the findings of Fifa’s report into allegations of corruption in the World Cup 2018 and 2022 bidding process made public.
Steele reiterated that she was not familiar with the report and was unsure of the circumstances in which people were interviewed for it.
“What we’re hoping for is that after the report, and once there have been recommendations, is that there’s transparency of what the mistakes were and how we’ll move forward as a whole,” she said.
Asked if she was able to name one thing that made her confident Fifa would be transparent, Steele repeated that she simply hopes Fifa will be clear about what it is doing and how it will move forward.
Weil then jumped in, saying he knows the press’ “talent of asking the same question again and again in different ways”.
“It was in a press release last week that the report will be out in the beginning of November and then we’re happy for you to say whether Fifa was transparent or not. But until then, is it fair you’re saying Fifa wasn’t transparent and trying to put a sponsor in a situation and make them say something? Tomorrow this will be 'Coke is not happy with Fifa'," he said.
“Let’s wait and criticise once the facts have come out.”
In response, the Guardian’s Arron Gibson reminded Weil that the reason these questions are asked “is because the public perception is that they [sponsors] are happy to stay quiet when money is rolling in, but are not prepared to address the corruption concerns.”
Fifa's brand perception plummeted among fans earlier this year after reports - which Fifa "strongly denies" - emerged that Qatar's former Fifa vice president, Mohamed Bin Hammam, paid officials £3m to win support to host the World Cup in Qatar.