“FIFA’s democracy needs a firewall between money and votes” - Mohammed Hanzab

FIFA’s plan to dramatically increase the amount of money available to its 211 member associations has prompted a new governance question: can a national federation be truly independent when it relies heavily on FIFA to keep operating?

That is the issue raised by Mohammed Hanzab, chairman of the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS) and vice-chair of the Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) Council, who argues that FIFA should consider safeguards separating development funding from the voting power of its members.

At the center of the debate is FIFA’s “one member, one vote” system. England, Brazil and France each have exactly the same voting power at FIFA Congress as every other member association.

Hanzab supports that principle, arguing that it prevents countries with the richest leagues and biggest commercial markets from dominating world soccer. His concern is what happens when some of those voters also depend financially on the organization whose leadership and policies they help determine.

How much money does FIFA give national soccer federations?

Under FIFA Forward 3.0, which covers 2023 through 2026, each member association can receive up to $8 million over the four-year cycle. That includes as much as $1.25 million annually for operating expenses and $3 million for specific development projects.

Those numbers could soon become considerably larger.

On July 28, FIFA proposed increasing regular Forward funding to $20 million per association for 2027-30. Each federation could potentially access another $20 million through a new optional Fast Forward program for special projects, meaning as much as $40 million could be available per association. The proposal remains subject to approval by FIFA’s members.

Hanzab stresses that development funding itself is not the problem. Smaller soccer nations need investment in infrastructure, competitions and administration if the sport is genuinely going to develop globally.

The potential conflict, he argues, begins when FIFA funding becomes essential to an association’s everyday survival.

Could FIFA change who gets to vote?

Rather than simply stripping poorer federations of their votes, Hanzab proposes a “Financial Dependency Index”measuring how much of each association’s recurring operating revenue comes from FIFA.

His illustrative model would classify associations receiving less than 25% of recurring revenue from FIFA operational support as financially independent, with progressively higher levels of dependency above that point. He stresses that those thresholds are proposals for discussion rather than definitive limits.

The system would deliberately avoid using GDP, population, FIFA ranking or overall revenue as criteria. It would also require minimum governance standards such as audited accounts, transparent procurement and credible elections.

Instead of automatically removing voting rights, highly dependent associations could be required to abstain from decisions directly affecting the funding on which they rely. Hanzab also proposes tighter controls on exceptional grants during the 12 months before FIFA presidential elections.

The aim, he says, would not be to transfer power toward Europe’s richest soccer nations. Associations failing the independence test would continue receiving development money while entering a program designed to help them generate more of their own revenue and eventually regain full voting rights.

For Hanzab, the principle FIFA needs to protect is ultimately a simple one: “one member, one vote” should also mean one independent vote.

SIGA is a non-profit organization that works with stakeholders from across the sporting world to safeguard integrity and good governance in the industry.AS is a proud media partner of the body.

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