ZURICH: FIFA made a surplus of $72m and expanded its reserves to $1.432bn accordinmg to the financial report for 2013.

The world federation’s accounts, as approved this year by the executive committe, recorded income of $1.386bn and expenditure of $1.314bn in the third year of a four-year commercial cycle linked to the 2014 World Cup.

Expenditure included $757m for event-related expenses – FIFA ran seven tournaments in 2013 – $183m for development projects and $216m for other operating expenses.

This latter total included including $17m in tax linked to subsidiary companies, including Early Warning System which monitors gambling on football, and financial assets.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter told a media briefing: “We are in a comfortable situation.” He was among the FIFA leaders and executives who shared bonus payments totalling $36.3m. The organisation increased its staffing over the year from 412 to 452.

Other issues

* Blatter welcomed the first formal home international played by Kosovo against a FIFA member national team, Haiti;

* the reform issues of age limit and term limits were referred to congress in Sao Paulo in June;

* a record financial report was approved for 2013;

* significant progress was expected in the next week from World Cup problem venues of Sao Paulo and Porto Alegre; and

* Blatter reiterated FIFA’s opposition to any form of technology on the pitch apart from goal-line systems; TV evidence could be used to review disciplinary issues;

* The confused situation over two Crimea clubs who play in the Ukraine league had been referred for consideration to the Russian and Ukraine national associations;

* Congress will be recommended to re-co-opt Moya Dodd and Sonia Bien-Aime to the FIFA exco for one further year.

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