How Sepp Blatter won the hearts and minds of Africa to ride out Fifa storms

The support Sepp Blatter enjoys from football associations across the developing world has been bolstered by his Goal project, which delivers millions of dollars to improve facilities. A visit to Zambia underlines how it has helped to keep him in power

Fraying at the edges, Fifa’s flags twist in the wind outside Football House in the Zambian capital, Lusaka, with the national flag between them. A nearby inscription is badly faded in the sun. It reads: “The Football Association of Zambia, Football House, built as part of Fifa’s Goal development programme was inaugurated in Lusaka on 6 April 2002 by Joseph S Blatter, Fifa president.”

Presenting Zambian football with its first home is just one example of how Blatter has won the hearts and minds of Africa’s football establishment. Its loyalty has enabled him to ride out every storm and is more critical than ever as seeks re-election at the helm of an organisation embroiled in the biggest scandal in its history.