Poland & FIFA, Sittin’ In A Tree.

Because of corruption, the Polish government came in to take over matters in the Polish FA last week. FIFA doesn’t like that so much, they’d prefer football associations be self-governed, and thus refused to recognize the FA while threatening to suspend the national team and turn Polkraine 2012 into TBA-kraine 2012. But now they’ve kissed and made up. Sorta.

“We have received letters and documents that there has been an agreement between the FA and the Polish government,” Blatter told reporters in Brussels.

“If this agreement comes into force tomorrow it is sufficient for us. We will not impose any sanctions once the agreement comes into force.”

What this means is…

i. Poland can play their upcoming World Cup qualifying games versus the Czech Republic & Slovakia. (Yes, they should definitely play a friendly against Czechosolvakia in between.)
ii. The acronyms, FIFA & UEFA, will formulate an independent committee of representatives to oversee the upcoming Poland FA elections and help usher in some fine, upstanding gentlepeople for the board. Because FIFA is squeaky clean and all that.
iii. Poland will implement a “roadmap”, whatever that means, to eliminate corruption. Much like the one they supposedly implemented in 2007, which obviously worked superbly. (The details of which I can’t quite find right now.)
iv. Poland can continue preparing for Polkraine 2012, something they were surely doing anyway, but need to be on their best behavior.

In short: Nothing has changed for the immediate future, though it might down the road, FIFA got a chance to flex its muscle(s) and UEFA had their feelings hurt.

William Gaillard, special adviser to UEFA president Michel Platini, warned however that the row between the Polish government and world soccer’s governing body FIFA had damaged relations between UEFA and the Polish authorities.

“We will, like FIFA, be monitoring the situation,” Gaillard said. “There is no immediate threat to their hosting of Euro 2012. However a lot of trust has been lost and we need to see if they stick to their side of the agreement this time around.”

So be on your best behavior, Poland, or run the risk of being called the worst FA in Europe.