Wenger at FIFA

In his 22 year tenure as manager of The Arsenal, Arsene Wenger rarely held back criticism of systems he felt were broken or lacking. Back in 2012, after a weekend which had three controversial referee calls, Wenger challenged then FIFA Head Sepp Blatter‘s resistance to VAR in football with a lengthy answer in his pre-match presser:

“Last weekend was a very, very bad weekend. The football authorities on a global scale have to sit together and see how we can improve.

“There are some immediate decisions to make but as well it is time for us to help the referees. To all be united and have a less conservative approach and finally opt for video.

“Video will help the referees, not question their authority. It will give them more credit, more authority and less mistakes. [We need] instant video replays on the demand of the referee.”

Wenger went on to claim that VAR wouldn’t slow down the game and gave several logical examples, examples which have been implemented to some degree, such as letting play go on and then deciding whether the player was offside via VAR. However, even Wenger, a frequent critic of referees in the Premier League, couldn’t have foreseen the absolute shambles that has been the PGMOL implementation of VAR.

Yesterday it was announced that Wenger will take over as Chief of Global Football Development at FIFA and that one of his new roles will be to sit on the board of IFAB which is the governing body for the Laws of the Game. I think it is hoped by many, if not all, that Wenger will bring his years of experience and insight to that board and help them to craft new laws, new interpretations, and set out rules for organizations like the Premier League which will make refereeing more standard, more fair, and more just.

That could also be hopeful thinking. Wenger’s not taking over IFAB, it will be one of his many duties to simply sit on the committee. His main purpose was set out pretty clearly in the FIFA announcement:

“Wenger will be chiefly responsible for overseeing and driving the growth and development of the sport for both men and women around the world. He will also be the leading authority on technical matters, both as a member of the Football and Technical Advisory Panels involved in The IFAB’s review and decision-making process on potential changes to the Laws of the Game, and as chairman of the FIFA Technical Study Group, which has conducted the technical analysis of FIFA tournaments since 1966.”

I don’t see this role as a crusader coming in to sweep up the mess of the Premier League as much as a man being asked to lend his decades of practical analytical experience to the development of coaches and in FIFA’s technical analysis. However..

Wenger is very outspoken when it comes to corruption and has challenged every system he has been part of for that very thing. He famously called Mike Dean dishonest after a controversial draw at West Brom in 2018. And Wenger has often claimed that there were more than just shenanigans going on in Ligue Un during his time at Monaco. And he’s been a very vocal critic of the Champions League referees and some preferential treatment toward Barcelona and Liverpool.

So while it looks like his main role at FIFA is to provide technical analysis and help grow coaching and develop the game for both men and women around the world. One can also still hope that he can have a positive impact on IFAB which in turn might put some pressure on the Premier League. Not that they seem keen to listen. Speaking in 2012, he sounded the call:

“Football is the first sport in the world today but we have to accept we have the most conservative approach to the game than any other sport. It can be a strength but on the refereeing side I think it is a weakness.”

I routinely watch football in four different leagues and the Premier League implementation of VAR is by far the most conservative of them all. And also the worst. If Wenger can even begin to break through some of that encrusted conservatism we might see something fairer implemented in the Premier League.

Qq

18 comments

  1. I was very happy to see Wenger take up a role like this rather than take on some management role with another team. Mainly, because I just don’t think he would be treated fairly anymore by media and fans.
    But, I also think he has a lot to give to the sport. He is such an intelligent man with such strong, positive convictions. I don’t have a lot of faith in fifa doing anything except focus on lining their pockets but I have a little more hope with him there trying to do something. Let’s hope he’s allowed to make an impact.

    1. Seconded.

      He’s a good get by FIFA. I hope they clean up their act. Many of us who comment here live in a FIFA fiefdom, CONCACAF, that was/is rotten to the core.

      Wenger’s job is to deliver football development to countries that need it, but without the corrupting influence of those countries’ votes.

      Excellent point about club management. This seems a more fitting fit.

  2. I think FIFA maybe using Wenger to bolster its reputation more than giving him a platform to implement any meaningful changes to the game.

    I kinda wanted him to go back to coaching but perhaps the market for his services wasn’t as strong as he once might’ve hoped.

    Any elite club playing CL would’ve had serious reservations about hiring Wenger with his record in the competition.

    1. The cynical part of me sees this as a BS appointment by FIFA but I think Wenger is a man with great integrity and trust that he will do his best. That means he will try his hardest to change the system if it needs it. I just wonder whether he can change a system as bankrupt as FIFA.

      1. I feel like Wenger might step down if he feels it was BS and he can’t make any impact. So it will be damning if he doesn’t stay long in this post.

  3. I don’t see how FIFA can directly influence Premier League. I don’t believe they have the authority. And until it is not in the Rules of the Game, then FIFA can only sit and watch.

  4. This could turn out to be a very good thing. I wanted Wenger to stay in football but I felt and still feel that days days as a manager and/or coach passed him by in his last few years at Arsenal.

    What remains however, is as formidable as can be:
    Charm, charisma, eloquence, deep understanding of the game, 30 years of experience, fierce intelligence and a born leader and teacher. Perhaps best of all – a good heart with all the decency and honor that a good heart can bring.

    If FIFA really uses those qualities and gives Wenger the freedom to develop the game with his vision, the sport will eventually benefit. Allez, Arsene, allez!

  5. Someone at FIFA decided to give Wenger this job. Even if their primary aim is to use Wenger’s clean image and reputation to airbrush Fifa’s image, they would have to balance it with the knowledge that Wenger actually is clean, and if it really comes down to it, outspoken. That is a positive sign as far as I’m concerned. Maybe things will improve.

    Not sure Wenger can directly affect the PL, but if he’s sitting on IFAB at least he can present a case.

    I’m not sure why, but this seems like a role Wenger will be really good in. A keen student of politics, economics and of course, football. He should be able to get something done as long as the whole organisation isn’t set against him.

    Also, unlikely as it is, he did say earlier that his role with Fifa doesn’t preclude him from managing a team.

  6. I’d expect him to make a big impact. He’s so obviously smart, sensible, practical, experienced and …honest. I don’t think he’ll accept whitewashes or things being buried under carpets. And others will have to step up to the plate or look bad in comparison. Just wish he was running the whole show.

  7. As others have said, Wenger is pretty much ideal for this role. Multilingual, very experienced and smart, good global outlook, and broadly respected.
    It’s probably too much to expect him to clean up the FIFA cesspool, but he might do OK in this particular corner of things.
    Good luck to him.

  8. Great post Tim

    Sounds like the perfect position for Arsene. I suspect he would rather be the manager of one of the worlds big teams but I hope he will be happy in his new position and I hope he can do some good for football.

  9. Great to see Wenger back in work after a well earned rest. A part of me wanted to see him make a come back and achieve the highest accolade, winning a well deserved European Cup. He really deserved it after years of consistency at the top and was probably hampered by Arsenal’s finance arrangements post Highbury. I would have loved for him to prove his critics wrong but in reality I don’t think I could imagine him leading another club and so for me this is an ideal post. I wish him luck in his new role…he will need it!

  10. We’re currently 500-1 odds to win the Premier League and Manchester United are 400-1. Fixing those odds should be Wenger’s 1st order of business at FIFA.

  11. Wenger has displayed both great Strategic and ‘delivery’ abilities.
    Strategic in terms of the part he played in the vision for the new stadium, training/ fitness and stats etc to ensure future growth.
    But also in the day to day, working with individuals to play every 4-6 days to ensure winning games.
    For any manager in any industry these are very different skillsets and things that give personal focus/ rewards.

    Getting long term ‘success’ and short term ‘success’ is very very hard and requires commitment and different skills and working with different types of people.

    But the key thing for any manager is to get the people you manage to be better today than they were yesterday.
    Its up to you to do this but also frame what ‘success’ means (hence why strategic and ‘delivery’ management offer different challenges and are often better accomplished by different managers. Not because they are ‘sh*t managers’ but because they are trying to manage to accomplish different ‘goals’. Great leaders are contextual – they are great doing the things they are great in.

    I hope that Wenger is able to put in place a strategic direction for Fifa in its development of football in developing countries (something he’s expressed interest in before). I have no idea if he has the budget to see that strategy implemented over the next 3/10/15 years. I don’t know if he’ll have leverage/ input into ‘delivery’/implementation.
    It might be that we don’t see ‘success’ from his work quickly.

    But I really hope that he is able to imprint Principles into the areas he can affect.
    This to me might be his biggest legacy. Principles can be unpicked by any new leader (Raul or Trump) but I still think Wenger can lay down a culture of principles where people ‘know’ what they’re trying to accomplish (Football and Footballers being respected and being better today than they were yesterday) but also know what is ‘wrong’ (drugs/money to cheat the game).

    I hope he can be as affective on Fifa as he has been on Arsenal.

    1. btw this is not hagiography on Wenger.
      Merely trying to see what is best in him, trying to see what he can impact and hoping wherever he can impact happens.
      He made mistakes – we all do.
      He also achieved huge successes.

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