FIFA president Sepp Blatter's shocking resignation Tuesday (effective after a new president is chosen), only days after he was re-elected for a fifth four-year term Friday, has global ramifications for the world of soccer, but it also will mean a lot for Canadian soccer specifically. For one thing, Blatter's resignation in the face of the ongoing bribery scandal (and with the FBI reportedly investigating him) should clear some of the air ahead of Canada's hosting of the Women's World Cup, which begins Saturday. For another, it reinforces the Canadian Soccer Association's decision to vote for challenger Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan in Friday's election; that decision could easily have led to vindictive reprisals if Blatter had stuck around, but with his exit, the CSA may benefit from already being in the reform camp. This could also potentially lead to Canada as a replacement host for the 2022 World Cup (either alone or in tandem with the U.S.) if that event is moved out of Qatar, something that seems much more likely now firm Qatar advocate Blatter is gone.

However, there are questions about just how firmly the CSA is in that reform camp. That's particularly the case given Canada's close past ties to indicted figures like Jack Warner and Aaron Davidson. It's also notable that the CSA was anything but firmly calling for reform this week, reacting to the indictments with only a terse release that said the organization was disappointed, but mostly seemed like an attempt to shift the focus to the Women's World Cup. Blatter's exit now makes the CSA's initially-tepid response to the corruption story seem like a missed opportunity to push for reform. His departure also would seem to boost the U.S.' chances of hosting a World Cup, and thus lower Canada's already-long chances of successfully bidding for the 2026 event.



Some of the potential positive effects for the CSA and Canadian soccer here are clear. While there's still going to be some discussion of the ongoing FIFA scandals during the Women's World Cup, Blatter's decision to leave should push those discussions further to the margins of conversation. There will now be more focus on the play on the field than we would have seen if an embattled figure like Blatter was still hanging on to power. The CSA also now shouldn't have to worry about negative repercussions from their decision to vote against Blatter Friday, which very well could have been the case if he'd stayed at the top. Indeed, Blatter's post-election comments of "I forgive everyone, but I don't forget" made it sound like he was already preparing to unleash retribution. With him on his way out, the CSA's decision to vote for Prince Ali appears like a smart one.

Also, if we do get actual FIFA reform, that could benefit Canada as well. The CSA already has gained influence within regional association CONCACAF (which was at the centre of many of the bribery charges) as a result of this, with CSA president Victor Montagliani appointed to a new committee to "evaluate and sustain" CONCACAF's business operations. There may be a bigger role for Canada in CONCACAF politics and FIFA politics going forward if the organizations are run more fairly and transparently.

A big impact that could be positive or negative centres on future World Cups. Now that Blatter is stepping down, many, including Yahoo's Dan Wetzel, have made a strong case that the 2022 World Cup in Qatar (which has taken massive fire for the reported deaths of over 1,200 migrant workers to date, and has already been moved to the winter thanks to the incredible heat of the Qatari summer) could and should be relocated. The question for Canada is where it's relocated to. The CSA is already preparing to make a bid for the 2026 World Cup, and many of the stadiums and infrastructure that would be required are already in place. If there is a move to relocate that World Cup, Canada might be able to step up the timing of its bid and land the tournament either as a sole host or as a joint host with the United States.

However, the U.S. might be the favourite to land that tournament (or 2026, if the Qatar tournament goes ahead as planned) on its own, given its resources, infrastructure and population. Also, one of the big factors that was working against the Americans (their disagreements with Blatter and with others in FIFA's inner circles) might actually be in their favour now given the central role the U.S. Department of Justice, Internal Revenue Service and FBI played in bringing down corrupt FIFA officials. Yes, the U.S. still isn't well-liked by everyone in world soccer, but if Canada ever did enjoy an edge over the Americans in FIFA politics, it would seem that that edge is at the very least diminished now, if not gone altogether. That political edge seemed like one of the few reasons a Canadian bid might have any sort of chance over an American one, and it may no longer be present. If the U.S. does manage to get the World Cup in either 2022 or 2026, that would likely doom Canada's chances of hosting any time in the near future thanks to FIFA's desire to rotate the tournament to different continents.

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