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| Rooney lashes out. |
Recently, the [English] FA kicked up a massive fuss when FIFA told them not to adorn their shirts with poppies for the friendly against Spain. The result of the whining saw FIFA eventually relent and agree to a compromise which allowed the England team to wear armbands embroidered with poppies.
Today, it emerged that UEFA agreed to reduce Wayne Rooney's three-match ban on the grounds that a two match ban was "more reasonable".
The FA's legal team also pointed to the fact that Miodrag Dzudovic, the Montenegro player who was the victim of Rooney's ire, had asked Uefa to show leniency because Rooney had acted out of “desperation rather than anger”, and had allegedly been “provoked by problems his family had to face a short time before the game”.
There you have it. Victory for England once again.
However, I can't help but wonder what the reaction would have been if a lesser association, say, the Maltese FA, had appealed a similar ban? Without the clout that the [English] FA possesses, you'd probably wager that the Maltese FA's pleas would be dismissed.
On a related note it's interesting that the superiority complex of the FA has been noted in recent times by Sepp Blatter, who criticised the British media for hounding him:
"In the '60s and '70s, the major sports federations were in British hands. This is no longer the case. The English lost power and, more recently, the 2018 World Cup. They were anxious to have it - much more than they were to have the Olympics.They thought football was coming home and the World Cup was rightfully theirs: when they came here with Beckham, Prince William and Prime Minister Cameron, they were sure they'd win the rights. They got two votes. Since then, they have been looking for any means to justify their defeat."
Take from that what you will.
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