Orban: We need to work more closely with FIFA

Orban: We need to work more closely with FIFA


Viktor Orban, Prime Minister of Hungary, currently holding The presidency of the Council of the European Union, paid a visit to FIFA on 5 April, where he met FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter.

Following his meeting with the FIFA President, Mr. Orban was happy to give an exclusive interview to FIFA.com, in which he went over the issues he had discussed with the head of world football's governing body. The affable 48-year-old is a real football fan and still plays the game despite, as he puts it, “not getting any younger”. It was no surprise, then, that he spoke passionately in defence of football.

FIFA.com: Mr Orban, would you mind telling us why you are in Zurich today?Viktor Orban: I came on the invitation of President Blatter because Hungary currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union. There are a number of European rules that are posing a problem in sport in general and in football in particular.

What did you discuss specifically?
We talked about ways to protect national teams, the rule that allows workers to move freely around Europe, and ways to protect footballers who are minors. In all these areas, European rules are not adapted to sport in general, which is a specific area that cannot be treated like any other.

Did you talk about any other issues?
We discussed other important topics such as illegal betting, which can lead to the sort of scandals that have occurred recently. These kinds of incidents completely ruin the spirit of the game. These are issues FIFA has been tackling, alongside the European Union, and I hope this co-operation will continue. I stand right behind FIFA in all these areas.

What can the European Union do to defend the specificity of sport?
The EU’s Treaty of Lisbon makes specific reference to the special nature of sport, without precisely defining what those specifities are. Yet you cannot treat a footballer like a normal worker, just like you cannot consider a football club like a normal employer. So we need to define the special nature of sport in concrete terms. That is why I am currently trying to form a group of Prime Ministers within the EU who are interested in sport, to move this forward.

Traditionally a great footballing nation, Hungary have struggled in recent years. Can you explain why?
Hungary is a football-loving country. Our past record speaks for itself. But after the fall of communism, all the structures, from the Federation to the clubs, disintegrated. The market economy that followed did not give priority to the restoration of Hungarian football. Only now are we attempting to relaunch a viable football economy. We have new people in charge of the Hungarian Football Federation, including a president who is among the top businessmen in the country. The government is cooperating as best it can, notably in the field of education. Slowly but surely, Hungarian football is on the mend.

It is often said that football is “more than a game.” Do you agree?
Yes, because football really is a formidable tool for educating young people. The sport is a vector for society’s important values and allows a nation to come together. It is an instrument of peace and, more philosophically, football is life. Twenty-two players joining together on a pitch for an hour and a half is a testing ground for life in society. If you love football, you love life! That is why I am such a passionate football fan and why I am doing what I can to protect it.