Fifa: No Worries about Next Meal

Sport? Or business?

With Fifa, sometimes it's hard to tell.

Soccer's world governing body announced a profit of $196 million for 2009, on revenue of $1.06 billion.

So if you've been worried about where Sepp Blatter's next four-star meal was coming from ... don't.

It strikes me that $196 million profit on revenues of $1.06 billion ... is nearly 20 percent profit. If one of the big oil companies reported a profit of 20 percent, people would go crazy.

So, why isn't Fifa pouring some of that money back into the sport? Maybe see if the group can get along on, oh, 10 percent profit for a year.

What could it do with the other $100 million from this year? Maybe buy soccer balls and distribute them in all those Third World countries where we read stories about guys kicking around a wad of paper. While they play barefoot.

Maybe open an academy in Africa and another in Central America. Perhaps infuse a little money into India, the last Black Hole on the soccer map. Where 1 billion people don't play soccer and don't care. Like, way, way more than Americans don't care.

What will Fifa do with the $196 million profit? Probably throw some lavish parties in Joburg. Give Sepp a raise. Buy him a gold-plated desk.

The rest ... they'll probably just waste.