The FIFA president who resigned is also a racist, sexist homophobe.

Corruption allegations are a pretty good reason for Sepp Blatter to resign. But there are a few other reasons we’re cheering…

Sepp Blatter has resigned as FIFA president after 17 years in the role, amid a mounting corruption scandal.

Last week, seven senior officials from soccer’s worldwide governing body were arrested in a Zurich hotel. Swiss national Blatter, 79, is now himself being investigated by the FBI and US prosecutors, according to The New York Times and ABC News.

He has repeatedly pleaded his innocence and that of FIFA.

While the corruption allegations give more than enough cause for Blatter to resign, there are a few other reasons we’re cheering for his downfall today… like the fact he’s a sexist, racist homophobe who did nothing to advance equality in sport.

In fact, if you haven’t heard, Blatter is so widely disliked for his backward, offensive views that Lily Allen even dedicated a rendition of her song “F*ck You” to him (other musicians have written entire songs dedicated to what a douchecanoe he is).

Here’s why we’ve never been fans of Blatter:

1. He’s sexist.

In 2013 at a FIFA congress in Mauritius, Blatter patronised the women in attendance by saying: “Any ladies in this room? Say something ladies! You are always speaking at home. Now you can speak here,” SportsMole reports.

In the same week, he described candidates for its executive committee, Australian Moya Dodd, as “good, and good-looking”.

Slate reports that in a separate incident,  when Blatter was asked by a female reporter about FIFA’s history of corruption, he shut her down with: “Listen, lady, when you speak about corruption, then you have to present evidence.”

Oh, and let’s not forget his advice on how to attract more followers to women’s sports.

“Let the women play in more feminine clothes like they do in volleyball. They could, for example, have tighter shorts.

“Female players are pretty, if you excuse me for saying so, and they already have some different rules to men – such as playing with a lighter ball. That decision was taken to create a more female aesthetic, so why not do it in fashion?”

To ice the cake, in 2013 FIFA’s anti-corruption expert Alexandra Wrage resigned from the organisation’s independent governance committee citing “blatant sexism”.

2. He’s racist.

In 2011, when Liverpool player Luis Suarez was accused of racially taunting Uruguayan player Patrice Evra, Blatter straight-out claimed “there is no racism” on the soccer pitch.

His suggested resolution to racist comments during a match?

“He should say that this is a game. We are in a game, and at the end of the game, we shake hands, and this can happen, because we have worked so hard against racism and discrimination.”

SportsMole reports Blatter also said of a match-fixing scandal in Italy: “I could understand it if it had happened in Africa, but not in Italy.”

3. He’s homophobic.

In 2013, Blatter described homophobia in Qatar as a “moral and ethical issue” (whatever that means). Then, asked how gay fans should behave during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar — where homosexuality is banned — he gave the following advice: “I would say they should refrain from any sexual activities.”

The comments, for which Blatter later apologised, were slammed by the Gay Footballers Support Network as ignorant and disrespectful.

“His comments also demonstrate a complete lack of awareness and a lack of respect for the struggles faced by LGBT people across the world,” the group said.

Then last year, when the world’s first openly gay professional footballer came out, FIFA waited more than a day before issuing what The Guardian describes as “a curt, beige statement” that “felt a little casual”.

Overall, not an ideal track record for advancing fairness and equality in the world of sport, is it?

It sounds to us like Blatter should have resigned a long time ago.

In this segment, hilarious TV host John Oliver explains why FIFA is “a comically grotesque organization”:

Do you welcome Blatter’s resignation?

Read more: 

Sportsmen let us down over and over again. So why are they talking at my kids’ school?

Shane Warne’s blokey bravado is all in good fun – until it isn’t.

This week has been crippling for Australian women’s sport.

Here are nine creative ways to get motivated to exercise.

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