Issa Hayatou
Encyclopedia
Issa Hayatou is the president of the Confederation of African Football
(CAF), named in 1987. In 2002, he ran for president of FIFA but was defeated by current president Sepp Blatter
. He is also a member of the International Olympic Committee
(IOC).
In November 2010 he was alleged by the BBC to have taken bribes in the 1990s regarding the awarding of World Cup television rights. The IOC has announced it will investigate him.
, Cameroon
, the son of a local Sultan, and became a middle distance runner and physical education teacher. Hayatou had a successful career as an athlete, becoming a member of the Cameroonian national squads in both Basketball and Athletics, and holding national record times in the 400 and 800 meter running.
He is married with four children. The Hayatou family are traditional holders of the sultanate (Lamidat, from the Sokoto Caliphate's traditional Fula
title Lamine) of Garoua. Hayatou was son of the reigning sultan, and many relatives have acceded to powerful positions in Cameroonian society. Most notable is Issa's brother Sadou Hayatou
, a former Prime Minister of Cameroon
and longtime high official under Cameroon president Paul Biya
, who is among those tapped to succeed him in the future. The Hayatou family continue to wield much political influence in northern Cameroon.
In 1974, aged just 28, he became Secretary General of the Cameroon Football Association, and Chair of the FA in 1986. As chair, we was chosen the same year to sit on the CAF Executive Committee. Following the retirement of Ethiopia's Ydnekatchew Tessema
from the CAF presidency in August 1987, Hayatou was elected as the fifth president in the body's history.
appearances by Senegal, Nigeria, and Cameroon, and pushed for African places in the finals to increase from two to five, with the 2010 World Cup in South Africa seeing the hosts garner an automatic sixth spot for an African team. Hayatou has presided over both the bid and the organizing committee for the 2010 games, the first in Africa. The African Cup of Nations finals expanded from 8 to 16 teams, in a confederation of over 50 nations in six zones and five regional confederations. Club competitions have undergone a similar grown in both numbers and scale, with more clubs participating in the African Cup of Champions Clubs, the CAF Confederation Cup ( begun in 2004 for national cup winners and high-placed league teams), the CAF Cup, and the CAF Super Cup. There has also been a expansion outside men's football, with the CAF overseeing Youth, Women's, Fustal, and Beach soccer competitions.
saw the payment of fees to African governing bodies and clubs for African-born players working in Europe. This was followed by the Meridian Project signed in December 1997 with UEFA, which was to provide cash payments to African National Associations every other year, and created the UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup
. The 1999 Goal Project created with FIFA gives 46 African FAs financial support worth one million dollars over four years. These negotiations, regardless of their impact on African club football, forged a close relationship between UEFA leaders and Hayatou, and led to UEFA's backing of Hayatou's nomination to replace Sepp Blatter
as head of FIFA in 2002. Blatter, supported by the American and Asian confederations, handily defeated Hayatou 56 votes to Blatter's 139.
, the presenter of FIFA's Dirty Secrets
, an edition of BBC
's flagship current affairs programme Panorama
alleged that Hayatou had taken bribes in the 1990s regarding the awarding of contracts for the sale of television rights to the football World Cup
. Panorama claimed to have obtained a confidential document from a company called ISL which showed that Hayatou was paid 100,000 French Francs by the company. ISL won the contract to distribute the television rights. Hayatou has denied the allegations, saying that the money went not to him but to CAF. The IOC has announced it will investigate Hayatou, due to his membership of the organisation.
In May 2011, The Sunday Times
published claims from a whistle-blower that Hayatou had, along with fellow Executive Committee member Jacques Anouma, accepted $1.5 million bribes from Qatar
in order to secure his support for their bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
from the next two African Cup of Nations. Hayatou charged the Togolese government with interference in the Togolese Football Association's affairs when the team withdrew from the 2010 cup prior to its start. The Togolese team was victim of an 8 January 2010 armed attack
while traveling to Angola by bus prior to the start of the Cup, resulting in two deaths in the Togo delegation. Togolese captain Emmanuel Adebayor
and Togo coach Hubert Velud
strongly criticized Hayatou in particular for the CAF decision, calling on him to resign from the CAF presidency
in Ogbomosho
, Oyo State
, Nigeria
.
Confederation of African Football
The Confederation of African Football is the administrative and controlling body for African association football.CAF represents the national football associations of Africa, runs continental, national, and club competitions, and controls the prize money, regulations and media rights to those...
(CAF), named in 1987. In 2002, he ran for president of FIFA but was defeated by current president Sepp Blatter
Sepp Blatter
Joseph S. Blatter , commonly known as Sepp Blatter, is a Swiss football administrator, who serves as the 8th and current President of FIFA . He was elected on 8 June 1998, succeeding João Havelange. He was re-elected as President in 2002, 2007, and 2011...
. He is also a member of the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
(IOC).
In November 2010 he was alleged by the BBC to have taken bribes in the 1990s regarding the awarding of World Cup television rights. The IOC has announced it will investigate him.
Life and career
Hayatou is the fifth president of the Confederation of African Football. He was born in GarouaGaroua
Garoua is the capital of the North Province of Cameroon, lying on the Benue River. The city had 235,996 inhabitants at the 2005 Census, and is an important river port.- Overview :...
, Cameroon
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
, the son of a local Sultan, and became a middle distance runner and physical education teacher. Hayatou had a successful career as an athlete, becoming a member of the Cameroonian national squads in both Basketball and Athletics, and holding national record times in the 400 and 800 meter running.
He is married with four children. The Hayatou family are traditional holders of the sultanate (Lamidat, from the Sokoto Caliphate's traditional Fula
Fula people
Fula people or Fulani or Fulbe are an ethnic group spread over many countries, predominantly in West Africa, but found also in Central Africa and Sudanese North Africa...
title Lamine) of Garoua. Hayatou was son of the reigning sultan, and many relatives have acceded to powerful positions in Cameroonian society. Most notable is Issa's brother Sadou Hayatou
Sadou Hayatou
Sadou Hayatou is a former Cameroonian politician. Hayatou served as Prime Minister of Cameroon from 26 April 1991 to 9 April 1992.-Biography:Hayatou was born in Garoua...
, a former Prime Minister of Cameroon
Prime Minister of Cameroon
Under the current constitution of Cameroon, the Prime Minister of Cameroon is a relatively powerless executive. While the Prime Minister is officially appointed to be the head of government, the President retains most of the executive power and can fire the Prime Minister at will.-History:The...
and longtime high official under Cameroon president Paul Biya
Paul Biya
Paul Biya is a Cameroonian politician who has been the President of Cameroon since 6 November 1982. A native of Cameroon's south, Biya rose rapidly as a bureaucrat under President Ahmadou Ahidjo in the 1960s, serving as Secretary-General of the Presidency from 1968 to 1975 and then as Prime...
, who is among those tapped to succeed him in the future. The Hayatou family continue to wield much political influence in northern Cameroon.
In 1974, aged just 28, he became Secretary General of the Cameroon Football Association, and Chair of the FA in 1986. As chair, we was chosen the same year to sit on the CAF Executive Committee. Following the retirement of Ethiopia's Ydnekatchew Tessema
Ydnekatchew Tessema
Ydnekatchew Tessema is a former Ethiopian president of the Confederation of African Football, footballer, manager and now is an honorary president after his death in 1987.- Early life :...
from the CAF presidency in August 1987, Hayatou was elected as the fifth president in the body's history.
Growth of the CAF
President of CAF for over two decades, Hayatou has overseen particularly successful FIFA World CupFIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
appearances by Senegal, Nigeria, and Cameroon, and pushed for African places in the finals to increase from two to five, with the 2010 World Cup in South Africa seeing the hosts garner an automatic sixth spot for an African team. Hayatou has presided over both the bid and the organizing committee for the 2010 games, the first in Africa. The African Cup of Nations finals expanded from 8 to 16 teams, in a confederation of over 50 nations in six zones and five regional confederations. Club competitions have undergone a similar grown in both numbers and scale, with more clubs participating in the African Cup of Champions Clubs, the CAF Confederation Cup ( begun in 2004 for national cup winners and high-placed league teams), the CAF Cup, and the CAF Super Cup. There has also been a expansion outside men's football, with the CAF overseeing Youth, Women's, Fustal, and Beach soccer competitions.
Relations with UEFA and FIFA
One of the major aims of Hayatou's presidency in the late 1990s was to provide incentives to African football clubs which would stem the flow of African players to Europe; an initiative which met with little success. Hayatou has couched some criticism of the uneven flow of football 'resources' in colonial terms, saying that "rich countries import the raw material – talent – and often send their less valuable technicians", an implied criticism of foreign coaching staffs that employed by most African national sides. A September 1997 initiative negotiated by Hayatou with UEFAUEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
saw the payment of fees to African governing bodies and clubs for African-born players working in Europe. This was followed by the Meridian Project signed in December 1997 with UEFA, which was to provide cash payments to African National Associations every other year, and created the UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup
UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup
The UEFA/CAF Meridian Cup features Under-18 representative sides from Europe and Africa, and is part of the co-operation programme between UEFA and the CAF.-Meridian Project:...
. The 1999 Goal Project created with FIFA gives 46 African FAs financial support worth one million dollars over four years. These negotiations, regardless of their impact on African club football, forged a close relationship between UEFA leaders and Hayatou, and led to UEFA's backing of Hayatou's nomination to replace Sepp Blatter
Sepp Blatter
Joseph S. Blatter , commonly known as Sepp Blatter, is a Swiss football administrator, who serves as the 8th and current President of FIFA . He was elected on 8 June 1998, succeeding João Havelange. He was re-elected as President in 2002, 2007, and 2011...
as head of FIFA in 2002. Blatter, supported by the American and Asian confederations, handily defeated Hayatou 56 votes to Blatter's 139.
Corruption allegations
In November 2010 Andrew JenningsAndrew Jennings
-Biography:Jennings was born in Scotland and as a child moved to London, England. He is the grandson of a former Clapton Orient player. Jennings worked for the Sunday Times Insight team in the late 1960s, after which he worked for other British newspapers before becoming an investigative reporter...
, the presenter of FIFA's Dirty Secrets
FIFA's Dirty Secrets
"FIFA's Dirty Secrets" is an episode of the BBC documentary series Panorama which was broadcast on 29 November 2010. The half-hour programme saw investigative journalist Andrew Jennings look into allegations of corruption with FIFA, the world's governing body of association football...
, an edition of BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's flagship current affairs programme Panorama
Panorama (TV series)
Panorama is a BBC Television current affairs documentary programme, which was first broadcast in 1953, and is the longest-running public affairs television programme in the world. Panorama has been presented by many well known BBC presenters, including Richard Dimbleby, Robin Day, David Dimbleby...
alleged that Hayatou had taken bribes in the 1990s regarding the awarding of contracts for the sale of television rights to the football World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
. Panorama claimed to have obtained a confidential document from a company called ISL which showed that Hayatou was paid 100,000 French Francs by the company. ISL won the contract to distribute the television rights. Hayatou has denied the allegations, saying that the money went not to him but to CAF. The IOC has announced it will investigate Hayatou, due to his membership of the organisation.
In May 2011, The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
published claims from a whistle-blower that Hayatou had, along with fellow Executive Committee member Jacques Anouma, accepted $1.5 million bribes from Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
in order to secure his support for their bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
2010 Togo suspension
Just days before the end of the 2010 African Cup in Angola, Issa Hayatou found himself in the middle of a controversy after the CAF's suspension of Togo national football teamTogo national football team
The Togo national football team, nicknamed Les Eperviers The Togo national football team, nicknamed Les Eperviers The Togo national football team, nicknamed Les Eperviers (The Sparrow Hawks, is controlled by the Fédération Togolaise de Football.They played at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Their team bus...
from the next two African Cup of Nations. Hayatou charged the Togolese government with interference in the Togolese Football Association's affairs when the team withdrew from the 2010 cup prior to its start. The Togolese team was victim of an 8 January 2010 armed attack
Togo national football team attack
The Togo national football team bus attack was a terrorist attack on the team bus of the Togo national football team that occurred on 8 January 2010 as the team traveled through the Angolan province of Cabinda on the way to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations tournament, which began on 10 January...
while traveling to Angola by bus prior to the start of the Cup, resulting in two deaths in the Togo delegation. Togolese captain Emmanuel Adebayor
Emmanuel Adebayor
Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor is a Togolese footballer who plays for Tottenham Hotspur as a striker on loan from Manchester City. He plays in the same position for the Togo national team. Adebayor previously played for Metz, Monaco and Arsenal and was voted African Footballer of the Year for 2008...
and Togo coach Hubert Velud
Hubert Velud
Hubert Velud is a French football manager and former player.-Coaching career:He coached Châlons-sur-Marne, Gap, Paris FC, Gazélec Ajaccio, Clermont, Cherbourg, Créteil, Toulon, Beauvais...
strongly criticized Hayatou in particular for the CAF decision, calling on him to resign from the CAF presidency
Olympic committee confusion
On 21 September 2011 it was announced that FIFA had appointed Hayatou President of FIFA's Olympic committee and approved his role as chairman of the Goal Bureau. Hayatou had previously headed FIFA's Olympic committee from 1992 to 2006. At the time of his appointment, Hayatou was still under investigation for alleged bribery. It was later denied by FIFA that Hayatou had been appointed President of the Olympic committee, his apparent appointment was described as "a technical error".Sports career
- 1964 - 1971 Champion at the 400m and 800m; member of the Cameroon national basketball team; football player at the university level.
- 1965 Member of the Cameroon national basketball team on the occasion of the first All Africa Games in BrazzavilleBrazzaville-Transport:The city is home to Maya-Maya Airport and a railway station on the Congo-Ocean Railway. It is also an important river port, with ferries sailing to Kinshasa and to Bangui via Impfondo...
.
Administrative career
- 1973 - 1974 Coordinator-Professor at the Lycée Leclerc (YaoundéYaoundé-Transportation:Yaoundé Nsimalen International Airport is a major civilian hub, while nearby Yaoundé Airport is used by the military. Railway lines run west to the port city of Douala and north to N'Gaoundéré. Many bus companies operate from the city; particularly in the Nsam and Mvan neighborhoods...
) - 1974 - 1983 General Secretary of the Cameroon Football Association
- 1982 - 1986 Director of Sports of Cameroon (Ministry of Youth and Sports)
- 1985 - 1988 President of the Cameroon Football Association
- 1986 Member of the Cameroon Football Association Executive Committee
- 1988 - today President of the Cameroon Football Association
- 1990 Member of the FIFAFIFAThe Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
Executive Committee - 1992 - today FIFA Vice-President; President of the Organising committee of the Football Olympic Tournaments of FIFA (till 2006); Vice-President of FIFA Committee for Security and Fair-Play; Member of the World Cup Organising Committee
- 1997 Member of the Women and Sport Committee of the International Olympic CommitteeInternational Olympic CommitteeThe International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
; Head of the Cameroonian sports delegations on several sporting occasions - 2001 Elected member of the International Olympic Committee during the Moscow session
Awards
On November 3, 2007, Hayatou was awarded an honorary degree from Ladoke Akintola University of TechnologyLadoke Akintola University of Technology
Ladoke Akintola University of Technology is a technical university located in Ogbomosho, Oyo State, Nigeria. The university currently enrolls 25,000 students and employs more than 3,000 people.-History:...
in Ogbomosho
Ogbomosho
Ogbomosho is a city in Oyo State, southwestern Nigeria, on the A1 highway. It was founded in the mid 17th century. The population was approximately 645,000 as of 1991; as of March 2005, it is estimated to be around 1,200,000....
, Oyo State
Oyo State
Ọyọ State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria, with its capital at Ibadan. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east by Osun State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west partly by Ogun State and partly by the Republic of Benin....
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
.