The general appearance of calm can easily be shattered. FIFA president Joseph Sepp Blatter, the sporting world’s most powerful man, Mohamed Bin Hammam, Asian soccer’s boss, and All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, have been presenting a strong defence to all criticism circulating in the media and among the disgruntled.

Today, at a media conference, that bold face seemed to recede into the background temporarily. To a set of pointed questions from The Indian Express, on the transparency of the AIFF and its funds, Dasmunsi was at pains to point out how each and every balance sheet was doubly audited, and that only “five per cent of the expenses” were administrative in nature.

Hammam, said: “The AFC provides the money only if it is happy with the accountability of the federation” — that was after he announced the AFC’s $ 1 million special ‘Winning in India with India’ project.

Blatter explained how even the FIFA had come under attack. (The marketing ‘arm’ ISL was going bankrupt).

In India, the problem is in ground realities. Mohun Bagan secretary Anjan Mitra complained to The Indian Express about how the gate money due to them from the NFL was not forthcoming for the last four years. Another top club official said he has been experiencing this for the past two years.

The big story was that neither of the three heads assembled today would want to face the problems head on. That there is an accountability problem has been made amply clear even from a vice-president (again, not willing to be named) of the federation itself. It is also true that a big contingent of Dasmunsi’s close workers were airlifted from Kolkata for this two-day bonanza in the Capital.

... contd.