Roundtable Discussion; The Future of Mineral Sands. Watch the video here.

Less Ads, More Data, More Tools Register for FREE

Pin to quick picksBarclays Share News (BARC)

Share Price Information for Barclays (BARC)

London Stock Exchange
Share Price is delayed by 15 minutes
Get Live Data
Share Price: 202.35
Bid: 202.15
Ask: 202.25
Change: 0.00 (0.00%)
Spread: 0.10 (0.049%)
Open: 0.00
High: 0.00
Low: 0.00
Prev. Close: 202.35
BARC Live PriceLast checked at -

Watchlists are a member only feature

Login to your account

Alerts are a premium feature

Login to your account

WRAPUP 3-Europe should weigh World Cup boycott to oust FIFA's Blatter, UK says

Sun, 31st May 2015 16:01

(Adds UEFA meeting in Berlin, Platini quotes)

* All options should be open including boycott - minister

* Blatter says he has been shown "zero respect"

* Rejected European advice to quit with "gigantic party"

* Swiss deny FIFA chief will be questioned immediately

* Graphics: http://link.reuters.com/fac84w

* http://reut.rs/1Br9c0X

By Andrew Osborn and Alice Baghdjian

LONDON/ZURICH, May 31 (Reuters) - Britain said Europe should consider boycotting future World Cups if Sepp Blatter doesn't quit as head of soccer's governing body over a corruption scandal, while Swiss authorities denied they would soon question the newly re-elected FIFA president.

The Swiss-born FIFA chief complained on Sunday he had been shown "zero respect" in recent days, revealing how he had rejected advice from one of his main critics, the head of the European governing body, to quit at last week's FIFA congress.

John Whittingdale, the British government minister with overall responsibility for sport, renewed calls for Blatter to step aside on Sunday, saying all options should be considered when it came to pressuring him to resign, including boycotting the World Cup - something that could split the sport and be calamitous for the tournament.

Blatter, 79, won a vote on Friday to serve a fifth term as FIFA president even though the U.S. Department of Justice has charged nine soccer officials with corruption and Swiss authorities are conducting their own criminal investigation.

He has played down the impact of the scandal on one of the world's most powerful sports bodies, which takes in billions of dollars in revenue from TV marketing rights and sponsorships.

Blatter is not accused of any wrongdoing personally and has implied that the United States timed news of the charges to try to scupper his re-election.

Asked how he had coped with the criticism in the past few days, he told the Swiss newspaper Sonntagsblick: "Let me put it this way: I've been shown zero respect."

Blatter's future could yet depend on the reaction of FIFA's major sponsors and stakeholders such as Coca-Cola and McDonald's, who have been dismayed by the arrests and U.S. prosecutors announcing indictments of officials and companies.

Britain's Sunday Times newspaper reported Swiss prosecutors would question Blatter, who has led FIFA for nearly 20 years, as part of a criminal investigation into votes to award the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar respectively.

A spokesman for Switzerland's attorney general dismissed the possibility of immediately calling in Blatter as "nonsense".

"The president of FIFA will not be questioned at this point in time," the spokesman told Reuters. However, he added: "If need be, he will be questioned in the future."

Russia and Qatar deny wrongdoing in their bids.

"A GIGANTIC PARTY"

The Sunday Times reported Blatter would be the last of 10 FIFA officials to be questioned. Michel Platini, the president of the European governing body UEFA, and Vitaly Mutko, the Russian sports minister, would also be interviewed, it said.

In the Swiss newspaper interview, Blatter described a meeting he had on Thursday with Platini, when the former French international star encouraged him to quit with a fanfare.

"He said in all seriousness: 'Sepp, hold the congress and at the end say you're stepping down. You'll have a gigantic party thrown for you, and you can keep your office here at FIFA'," Blatter said, adding that he had refused Platini's invitation to have the conversation over a glass of whiskey.

Blatter comfortably won the FIFA vote with strong support from developing nations, which have received generous funding from FIFA to develop the sport under Blatter's leadership.

Britain - which has been one of Blatter's fiercest critics, especially since England lost a bid to host the 2018 World Cup - stepped up the pressure on Sunday.

"Michel Platini has talked of European nations boycotting future World Cups if Blatter refuses to stand down. No options should be ruled out," Whittingdale, who is Britain's Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport, wrote in the Sunday Times.

Member associations of UEFA will meet before the European Champions League final in Berlin on Saturday to discuss its next step. Before Blatter's re-election, Platini said they would be "open to all options".

But asked about a boycott, he said on Thursday: "I honestly don't wish that." In any case, achieving consensus at UEFA may be hard; French media reported that the president of the country's federation, Noel Le Grat, voted for Blatter.

Seven senior soccer officials were arrested in a dawn raid before the FIFA congress in Zurich, and U.S. authorities have said altogether nine officials and five sports media and promotions executives have been charged in cases involving more than $150 million in bribes over a period of 24 years.

The indictment mentioned two payments cleared by Standard Chartered. "We are looking into those payments and will not be commenting further at this time," a spokesman for the London-based bank said.

Other banks named on the indictment, including Britain's Barclays, are making internal checks on their involvement and cooperating with the authorities, banking sources told Reuters.

Barclays declined comment.

A CLEAR NEW START

British Prime Minister David Cameron and Greg Dyke, the chairman of England's Football Association, have urged Blatter to quit. Prince William, who lobbied for Britain to host the 2018 tournament along with star player David Beckham, has also spoken of the need for FIFA to reform.

The government of Germany, the reigning world champions, also called for change. Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told the Welt am Sonntag newspaper that soccer brought people around the world together. "That should be the real legacy of FIFA. I have serious doubts, whether FIFA is up to this great task without a clear new start," he said.

Many soccer experts regard a European-led boycott as unrealistic proposition believing that if it went ahead it would be a disaster for a sport that has avoided the kind of splits which have weakened others. Boxing for instance is now governed by four world bodies.

Dyke said it would be "ridiculous" for England to boycott the next World Cup in 2018 in protest because it would not have an impact. "It's got to be done by enough nations to have an impact, if it's done," Dyke told BBC TV's Andrew Marr show, saying any kind of action needed to be with others.

Later he told BBC Radio that any boycott needed the support of "10 large countries" to have an impact, adding that the Dutch and Germans were also demanding change. (additional reporting by Caroline Copley in Berlin, Alex Smith in London and Brian Homewood in Zurich; editing by David Stamp and Rosalind Russell)

More News
4 May 2024 08:37

Norway wealth fund to back Barclays CEO, chair at AGM

OSLO, May 4 (Reuters) - Norway's $1.6 trillion sovereign wealth fund, one of the world's largest investors, supports the reappointment of Barclays CEO C.S. Venkatakrishnan and Chair Nigel Higgins to the British bank's board, the fund manager said on Saturday.

Read more
3 May 2024 17:04

Ex-Odey portfolio manager Hanbury warns investors are 'buying blind'

LONDON, May 3 (Reuters) - Former Odey Asset Management (OAM) portfolio manager James Hanbury has said in a letter to investors that passive and systematic trading strategies have grown so much that those trading on company fundamentals might be hurt.

Read more
2 May 2024 13:48

UK shareholder meetings calendar - next 7 days

Friday 3 May 
Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust PLCGM re share issue
HSBC Holdings PLCAGM
Intercontinental Hotels Group PLCAGM
Mondi PLCAGM
More Acquisitions PLCAGM
Monday 6 May 
no events scheduled 
Tuesday 7 May 
Caledonia Mining Corp PLCAGM
CPPGroup PLCAGM
Just Group PLCAGM
Macfarlane Group PLC AGM
Plus500 LtdAGM
Supernova Digital Assets PLCAGM
Wednesday 8 May 
Airea PLCAGM
Antofagasta PLCAGM
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLCAGM
Deltex Medical Group PLCAGM
Direct Line Insurance Group PLCAGM
Fidelity European Trust PLCAGM
Haleon PLCAGM
Jardine Matheson PLCAGM
JZ Capital Partners LtdEGM re investing in a secondary fund
Oscillate PLCAGM
Pershing Square Holdings LtdAGM
Rentokil Initial PLCAGM
WPP PLCAGM
Thursday 9 May 
Ascential PLCAGM
BAE Systems PLCAGM
Balfour Beatty PLCAGM
Barclays PLCAGM
CAB Payments Holdings PLCAGM
Catenai PLCGM re convertible loan note
Clarkson PLCAGM
FBD Holdings PLCAGM
Genel Energy plcAGM
Gym Group PLCAGM
Harbour Energy PLCAGM
Hiscox LtdAGM
IMI PLCAGM
Inchcape PLCAGM
Indivior PLCAGM
John Wood Group PLCAGM
Jupiter Fund Management PLCAGM
Logistics Development Group PLCAGM
Man Group PLCAGM
Morgan Advanced Materials PLCAGM
OSB Group PLCAGM
Public Policy Holding Co IncAGM
Rathbones Group PLCAGM
RM PLCAGM
Spire Healthcare Group PLCAGM
Synthomer PLCAGM
Uniphar PLCAGM
  
Comments and questions to newsroom@alliancenews.com
  
A full 21-day events calendar is provided each day with a subscription to Alliance News UK Professional.
  
Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

Read more
1 May 2024 14:50

Barclays to cut jobs in investment banking - reports

(Sharecast News) - Barclays has reportedly kicked off a fresh round of redundancies, cutting "a few hundred roles" at its investment bank as it looks to tackle underperformers and reinvest in new talent.

Read more
30 Apr 2024 20:30

GM in talks with Barclays to replace Goldman Sachs in credit card partnership -source

NEW YORK April 29 (Reuters) -

Read more
29 Apr 2024 10:02

LONDON BROKER RATINGS: Deutsche Bank likes Frasers; Barclays cuts JD

(Alliance News) - The following London-listed shares received analyst recommendations Monday morning and Friday:

Read more
26 Apr 2024 16:35

London close: Stocks buoyed by banking, mining positivity

(Sharecast News) - London's equity markets closed positively on Friday, buoyed by gains in the banking sector following better-than-expected results from NatWest.

Read more
26 Apr 2024 16:19

European bank stocks at highest since 2015 after earnings boost

STOXX Europe 600 banks index highest since Oct. 2015

*

Read more
26 Apr 2024 09:45

NatWest profit falls less than feared ahead of state escape

First-quarter profit down 27% in competitive market

*

Read more
26 Apr 2024 09:33

LONDON BROKER RATINGS: Peel Hunt cuts ConvaTec to 'reduce'

(Alliance News) - The following London-listed shares received analyst recommendations Friday morning:

Read more
25 Apr 2024 16:57

LONDON MARKET CLOSE: FTSE 100 shakes off red-hot US inflation gauge

(Alliance News) - London's FTSE 100 outperformed on Thursday, enjoying a solid rise on largely well-received corporate earnings and a share price jump for miner Anglo American after it received a takeover bid from peer BHP.

Read more
25 Apr 2024 15:14

London close: Stocks finish mixed as US GDP growth slows

(Sharecast News) - London's stock markets finished with a mixed performance on Thursday, as investors digested a slower-than-expected GDP growth reading from the United States, while a slew of well-received earnings underpinned the top-flight index.

Read more
25 Apr 2024 11:00

Where are Wall Street's analyst notes on Trump's Truth Social?

NEW YORK, April 25 (Reuters) - Trump Media & Technology Group is one of the most actively traded U.S. stocks, yet Wall Street's equity analysts are staying clear.

Read more
25 Apr 2024 09:19

Barclays Q1 profit falls 12% as trading slump hits

Q1 profit of 2.3 bln pounds, just above forecasts

*

Read more
25 Apr 2024 08:36

TOP NEWS: Barclays first quarter profit falls but beats expectations

(Alliance News) - Barclays PLC on Thursday reported a fall in first quarter profits as a weak investment banking performance hindered performance.

Read more

Login to your account

Don't have an account? Click here to register.

Quickpicks are a member only feature

Login to your account

Don't have an account? Click here to register.