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FIFA fallout overshadows Copa America kick off

Xinhua, June 12, 2015 Adjust font size:

The 2015 Copa America championship kicks off Thursday in Chile with no clear favorite from among the 12 national football teams competing.

But as the event gets underway, an even bigger question looms in the minds of the football community, including players, fans, coaches, managers and officials: What's going on inside world soccer body FIFA?

In the world of football, the players used to supply the scandal with their on-field antics (biting, headbutting, stripping) and private lives (girlfriends, girlfriends, girlfriends).

All that suddenly changed on May 25, when authorities arrested seven active and former FIFA executives on charges of bribery and kickbacks in relation to how the host cities were selected for the 2010 World Cup, and the 2014, 2018 and 2022.

So ... where were we? Oh, yes, the Copa America, South America's top tournament for national teams.

Only a scandal of such global proportions could overshadow the fact that the Copa will feature such talent as Argentina's Lionel Messi, considered to be the world's best player and one of the best players of all time, and Brazil's Neymar, arguably one of the top five players today.

Other star footballers to watch for are Carlos Tevez, playing for Argentina, Alexis Sanchez and Arturo Vidal (Chile), and James Rodriguez and Radamel Falcao (Colombia).

The South American Football Confederation (Conmebol), which organizes the championship, has also been tainted by the scandal, with allegations of corruption levelled at two ex-presidents so far.

While that might deflate the general morale of the organizers, it shouldn't have an influence on the teams and the players, who are probably more concerned about Chile's feared winter weather.

Fatigue may be another factor, since many of the players are coming from the recently concluded competitive European football season.

Conmebol's 10 members and two guest teams from the Concacaf (Mexico and Jamaica) will be looking to win the title, which Uruguay clinched in 2011 in Argentina.

Argentina, currently ranked world No. 3 and the runner up of the 2014 Brazil World Cup, is likely to dominate the Copa, which begins with Chile vs. Ecuador as part of the group phase, but that could be said of Brazil and Colombia as well. Endi