Shamed ex-FA chairman Greg Clarke QUITS his £190,000-per-year job as FIFA

On Nov 12, 2020

Shamed ex-FA chairman Greg Clarke QUITS his £190,000-per-year job as FIFA vice-president – despite UEFA asking him to STAY ON to protect their voting power – after his racist, homophobic and sexist gaffes

Clarke will stand down from his £190,000-a-year FIFA vice-president role
The 63-year-old had stated UEFA have asked him to stay on until March 2021
But after a call with president Aleksander Ceferin, that stance has changed
Clarke resigned from his role as FA chairman on Tuesday following an embarrassing parliamentary hearing where he referred to ‘coloured’ footballers
FIFA issued a strongly-worded statement urging Clarke to ‘do the right thing’

Published: 03:48 EST, 12 November 2020 | Updated: 07:40 EST, 12 November 2020

UEFA have confirmed Greg Clarke will step down from his role as FIFA vice-president, despite originally asking the disgraced former FA chairman to stay on in the role.

The 63–year-old resigned as chairman of the Football Association on Tuesday in disgrace after making offensive comments about minority groups.

However, after being elected by UEFA last year, he had originally planned to remain in his £190,000-a-year post, which runs until 2023.

Greg Clarke will now stand down from his £190,000-a-year role as FIFA vice-president

That is no longer the stance, though, following a conversation with UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin on Thursday morning.

A UEFA spokesperson said: ‘Following a telephone call this morning between the UEFA President and Greg Clarke, they agreed with Greg Clarke’s proposal that he should step down with immediate effect from his position as a UEFA representative on the FIFA Council.’

Clarke had earlier insisted that he was only staying on due to a request from Ceferin that he do so.

‘I am staying purely at the request of UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin,’ he told Sky Sports on earlier in the day.

The decision had already sparked outrage within the football community, with Gary Neville leading the calls for Clarke to be forced into a rethink.

‘Unacceptable,’ the former Manchester United defender wrote on Twitter. ‘A resigned Fa chairman stays on as a FIFA Vice President! @FA have you got the guts to deal with this mess. Independent Regulator please ASAP!!’

Clarke had said he’d been asked to stay on as FIFA vice-president by Aleksander Ceferin (left)

FIFA appeared to give a strong indication on Wednesday evening of their stance on Clarke’s position – suggesting that it would be the ‘right thing’.

A FIFA spokesperson said: ‘FIFA’s zero tolerance position on discrimination remains steadfast and clear: any form of discrimination, including racism, sexism and homophobia, has no place in football.

‘In the circumstances and given the nature of his comments, FIFA considers that Mr Clarke did the right thing to resign as Chairman of the FA on Tuesday.

‘Mr Clarke was elected to his position on the FIFA Council by UEFA and his term of office…