FEATURE STORIES

• EDITORIAL: The more the merrier
• Football summit and committee meetings in Zurich
  
• Record number of World Cup entries
  
• An estimated 700 qualifying games for France '98
• Japan and Korea enter the last lap
• Olympic fixtures ratified
• World Ranking reflects the EURO '96 championship qualifiers
  

IN THE NEWS

• National associations have a free hand in choice of match balls
• 1996 List of International FIFA Match Officials being drafted

EDITORIAL:
THE MORE THE MERRIER

As the 30 September deadline for entries for the 1998 FIFA World Cup drew closer, it became obvious that a new record was about to be established. While the 1994 tournament had attracted 144 entries, the last World Cup of the century is now certain to surpass even that and reach, for the first time ever, the 170 mark.

The new record is a brilliant reflection of the dynamic growth of the world's greatest sports event. Although the large majority of the entrants cannot, in all reality, aspire to the ultimate achievement of the world title, they are inspired to enter as contestants because of the attention it always attracts, and the irresistibility of the sporting challenge. For a place in the World Cup finals acts as an incomparable stimulant to any country seeking the exposure and the goodwill which such sporting success can bring.

Certainly the number of World Cup contenders has also grown simply because the number of countries has increased as the world's geopolitical map is constantly being redrawn. But it is gratifying to note the urgency with which these newly emerging associations inscribe their names for the biggest competition of all, although some do (understandably and not unwisely) prefer first to test the international football waters within the framework of their respective continental championships.

Competing in the World Cup is, after all, an important part of being a member of the FIFA family and of sharing the thrill of chasing the same ultimate prize as larger and smaller countries in other continents. And the final tableau invariably comes up with a newcomer to the world scene, be it Haiti or Zaire in 1974, New Zealand or Kuwait in 1982, Iraq or Canada in 1986, the UAE in 1990, Greece or Nigeria in 1994 (to take but a few examples), thus constantly adding to the colourful range of countries who have made the finals at one time or another.

Will the list of 61 countries who have achieved that distinction since 1930 be extended in 1998? The chances are, of course, better than ever - mathematically, at least, now that there will be 32 finalists rather than 24. This, too, must surely have acted as an incitement to many federations to try their luck.

More entrants also means more intensive competition for the finalist places, even if those places have also increased. And this preliminary competition promises to hold the worldwide football public almost as much under its spell as the finals in two and a half years' time. The individual continental confederations have given careful thought as to how to maximise this excitement and seem to have come up with interesting different ways of determining who shall carry their colours in France in 1998.

The next move in the preparations for the biggest World Cup ever will be the draw for the preliminary rounds in Paris on 12 December.

Joseph S. Blatter
General Secretary

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS HAVE A
FREE HAND IN CHOICE OF MATCH BALLS

The new conditions contained in Law II (The Ball) give the associations freedom to use footballs of their choice for their own competitions. As already announced in the 8/95 edition of FIFA News, for competitions organised by FIFA or the confederations, only tested footballs complying with the basic technical requirements stipulated in Law II and, in addition, bearing the official stamp of quality "FIFA APPROVED", or "FIFA INSPECTED" or "International Match Ball Standards" may be used. For all other official matches, the ball must meet the mimimum requirements of Law II.

An association may therefore either:

1. stipulate that footballs be used bearing one of the stamps of quality mentioned in decision 4 ("FIFA APPROVED", "FIFA INSPECTED" or "International Match Ball Standards"); or

2. waive this condition but, as before, insist on footballs that meet the minimum technical requirements of Law II (circumference 68-71 cm, weight 396 - 453 g, pressure 0.6 - 1.1 atmosphere) in its competition matches. Every football bearing one of the designations listed above fulfils these conditions as well as four others, namely sphericity, loss of pressure, water retention and bounce. In addition, "FIFA APPROVED" denotes stability of shape and size.

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1996 LIST OF INTERNATIONAL
FIFA MATCH OFFICIALS BEING DRAFTED

FIFA associations have until 30 October to propose their match officials for the 1996 FIFA international list. The current conditions for eligibility were announced in a circular at the beginning of September. Each association may propose a maximum of ten referees/linesmen or none at all, if preferred. Match officials may not be older than 45 (that is, date of birth on or after 1 January 1951). The age limit for any new candidates is 42 (born on or after 1 January 1954).

The temporary List of Women Referees and Lineswomen drawn up in 1995 will become definitive for 1996. Prospective female officials (up to a maximum of four from each association) must have been officiating for at least two years as referees or lineswomen in the women's first division in their country and be qualified for appointment to at least the men's third division in their country. The age restrictions for women are between 25 and 42.

The FIFA Referees' Committee will decide which of the proposed referees and linesmen and -women will be accepted for the 1996 lists. The number of match officials chosen will reflect the standing of refereeing in the various associations, which will be notified of the names of the selected women referees and lineswomen towards the end of December. The final, published list will be despatched at the beginning of next year.

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A WORKING PARTY WILL EXAMINE
PROPOSED REFORMS IN "VISION"

A specially appointed working party will examine the proposals to reform international football put forward by the European football union in its discussion paper "Vision". The Presidents and General Secretaries of the six confederations reached this decision after an open exchange of views with FIFA President JoÃo Havelange and General Secretary Joseph S. Blatter at a meeting in the FIFA offices in Zurich on 9 October.

World football leaders pictured in a group portrait.

The Presidents and General Secretaries of the confederations and of FIFA. Seated from left: Jack Warner (CONCACAF), Lennart Johansson (UEFA), Nicolás Leóz (CONMEBOL), João Havelange, HRH Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (Asia), Issa Hayatou (Africa) and Charles Dembsey (Oceania). Standing, from left, their General Secretaries Chuck Blazer, Gerhard Aigner, Eduardo Deluca, Joseph S. Blatter, Peter Velappan, Mustapha Fahmy and Josephine King. (Picture: Kurt Schorrer)

The working party, composed of the General Secretaries from the confederations and FIFA, will meet again in Zurich on 10 November. The proposals contained in both Vision papers will be discussed as a whole at this meeting. The group will then pass on the conclusions to the confederations' Presidents, who will then meet again on 20 November so as to draft a report for the FIFA Executive Committee. The next meeting of the FIFA Executive will be held in Paris on 11 December 1995.

AN ESTIMATED 700 QUALIFYING GAMES FOR FRANCE '98
The Bureau for the Organising Committee of the FIFA World Cup, FRANCE '98, was delighted with the record number of entries to the world governing body's most prestigious competition and the progress already made in the preparations for the draw in Paris on 12 December. The question of Bosnia-Herzegovina's participation is at present provisional until the FIFA Executive Committee has resolved the matter, pending political and security developments in the country.

So as to relieve some of the pressure on players and clubs, the general secretariat has drafted a coordinated international match calendar for the World Cup preliminaries, which will be played from March 1996 to November 1997. FIFA has pinpointed sixteen dates on which qualifying games could be played, eight of them in mid-week and the other eight at the weekend, with possible local adaptations. The World Cup Bureau also discussed proposals from each of the confederations regarding their respective qualifying system. These proposals are subject to confirmation by the plenary FIFA Organising Committee of the World Cup at its meeting in Paris on 10 December, two days before the draw for the preliminary competition.

The continental federations proposed qualifying procedures based upon several groups of various sizes - apart from the South American confederation, CONMEBOL, which will arrange for all of its nine entrants (titleholders Brazil qualify automatically) to play home and away games against each other in the league system. Europe is planning to form nine groups for the preliminaries, from which the group winners and the five best second-placed teams will qualify for France '98.

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JAPAN AND KOREA ENTER THE LAST LAP

In the contest to host the 2002 FIFA World Cup, the two contenders, Japan and Korea Republic, are nearing the finish line. The Football Association of Japan and the Korea Football Association formally submitted their candidature files to FIFA at small ceremonies held in Zurich on 28 and 29 September respectively, just ahead of the 30th September deadline.

Presenting the Korea candidature are (l-r) General Secretary Song Young Shik, Chairman of the Korean Bidding Committee, Koo Pyong Hwoi, and (r) Oh Wan Kon, Vice-President of the Korean Football Association.

President of the FA of Japan, Ken Naganuma (2nd from r.) accompanied by Vice President, Shun-Ichiro Okano (far l.) and Junji Ogura (r) hands over his country's candidature file for FIFA General Secretary Joseph S. Blatter.

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RECORD NUMBER OF WORLD CUP ENTRIES

With 172 associations out of 193, a predicted record number of countries has entered for the preliminary competition of the 1998 World Cup. The Bureau of the FIFA Organising Commitee for the World Cup ratified the list of entries at its meeting in Zurich on 13 October and decided that any entries delayed for technical or administrative reasons would still be accepted*. After the draw in the "Carrousel" of the Louvre in Paris on 12 December 170 countries - France as host and Brazil as reigning world champions qualify automatically - will all set to kick off for the one-and-a-half year qualifying period. The preliminary competition starts on 1 March 1996 and closes on 16 November or, in the case of play-offs, on the 30 November 1997.

The record number of entries for previous World Cups was 144 for USA '94. According to an initial assessment, roughly 700 preliminaries will have to be played around the world for the 32 finalists to qualify.

• 1998 World Cup preliminaries: Uganda number 172
  
• Guinea-Bissau is 171st competitor in 1998 World Cup preliminaries

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OLYMPIC FIXTURES RATIFIED

The Organising Committee for the 1996 Olympic Football Tournaments passed a number of resolutions in connection with these two big competitions. The draw is due to be held in Atlanta on 5 May 1996 and both the USA hosts and defending champions Norway have been seeded at the top of the groups for the women's draw. The four seeded teams in the men's tables will be hosts USA and one representative each from Africa, Europe and South America.

The Committee also ratified the conditions for eligibility for 1996. As already announced, the finalists of the men's tournament may field three players who are not subject to age or other restrictions. The other players may not be older than 23 (set date: 1.1.1973) and may not have already played in the final rounds of an Olympic Tournament.

As can be seen from the fixture list, the two tournaments will be run on parallel lines, occasionally featuring a women's match and a men's game as double-headers. Tickets are already selling like hot cakes. By mid-October, the Atlanta organising committee (ACOG) had sold over 500,000 tickets in the five venues, Athens (Georgia), Birmingham (Alabama), Washington DC, Miami and Orlando (Florida) and the final in Athens is already a sell-out.

FIFA On-Line Webmaster Note:
For additional information on the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, USA, the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games has established a World Wide Web site at http://www.atlanta.olympic.org/.

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