Meeting under the chairmanship of FIFA President Joseph 5. Biaiter in Tokyo on 15 Decemoer 2007, ihe FIFA Executive Committee passed a seres of decisions, incluuding the introduction of a Refereeing Assistance Programme (RAP) and the pr’nc’ple whereby no matches in FIFA competitions may be p’ayed at an altitude ir excess of 2,750 metres above sea level without acclimatisation.
During the meeting, Blatter reiterated ihe importance of tne Laws of the Game and refeering for football as a whole: “The future of our game is intrinsically linked with the-quality of refereemg. Therefore, the new Refereeing Assistance Programme is crucial for footba’. Today’s decision to launch this programme is a milestone in the history of tne game.”
The basic obiectivee of the RAP is to professionalise the environment in which referees develop and wcrk – at botn national and international level.
a) the preparation of potential match officials for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and the professionalisation of refereeing at the top level;
b) the development of refereeing at member association level.
In order to achieve this, refereeing development officers will work hand in hand withh instructors around the world to ensure a uniform approach. These efforts will be accompanied by close cooperation with the confederations, member associations and existing FIFA development officers. An extensive range of courses and workshops, supported by technological aids including internet resources, will also be organised. In total, FIFA plans to invest some USD 40 milion in the programme.

Aporoximately 200 guests were welcomed by Joseph S. Blatter to the traditional FIFA New Year reception on 9 January 2008. In high, spirits, the FIFA President greeted many friends at the Home of FIFA, incuding prominent guests from local sports, political and business circles as well as the cultural scene The guest of honour at this year’s reception was Swiss national team coach Jakob Kuhn, who |0ined the FIFA President and FIFA Executive memoer Franz Beckenbauer on stage. In the midstof this illustrious gathering, the three entertained the guests with pleasantries on the subject of football, moderated by FIFA’s Acting D’rector of Communications Andreas Herren. Comments obviously focused on the upcoming UEFA EURO 2008 due to take place in Switzerland and Austria this summer. “I’m happy that Zurich ‘s a venue for the European Championship end I am sure that we will see some great games here in our city, with France, Italy and Romania showing up. I’m a bit sad triai Switzerland won’t be playing here,” admitted Blatter “But I ihink that Switzerland can reach the semi-finals, and from that point or, anything is possible.”
Beckenbaueriomeo in ard admitted, that “although my predictions usually dor’t come true, I consider Germany one of the favourites, witn a young and we’l-deveioped team.” Concerning FIFA, he said with ris trademark rumour, “It has been a good start to the year for FiFA, as the President is in a very good mood. If this is the same a: the enc of the year, it will have been a very good year.” Kuhn said that his team would be hoping to go far in the European finals, and he would do everything possible to coach his team to the final. “On 29 June 2008, I would like to answer the question of how I saw rny team score the winning goal,” Kuhn said w’th a smile.
The coach was given a small replica FIFA World Cup Trophy and a honorary medal as a memento of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany. “He did fantastic things in 2006, reaching the round of 16 with the Swiss team,” said Blatter, before adding “But if only he had better penalty takers.”
Blatter and FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke then handed over a cheque for CHF 50,000 to Zurich city councillor Gerold Lauber for the town’s sports holiday camp for young people in Fiesch I’canton of Valais)
Finally, the FIFA President read “A poem of time” to his guests, finishing with the words: “I wish you time -time to live.” After the official ceremony, the guests enjoyed the crisp January afternoon at the Home of FIFA with a delicious lunch buffet, mingling with friends and colleagues. Amongst many representatives from sports, business and politics were Stephane Chapuisat, SOS Children’s Villages ambassador, former Swiss international and world-class player for Borussia Dortmund, Jorg Stiel, Dormer Swiss national team goalkeeper, Andy Egli, former Swiss international, and Ralph Zloczower, President of the Swiss football association (SFV).

Christmas came early for 22-year-old Kim Gwan-hyeong on 22 December 2007 when he won the Korean FIFA Interactive World Cup 2008 qualifying event in Seoul to become the fourth confirmed grand finalisi in Berlin on 24 May 2008. Following the hugely successful FIFA World Cup™ in 2002 and more recently the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2007, the FIFA Interactive World Cup is the latest in a series of thrilling FIFA competitions in Korea and this event certainly did not disappoint.
In the height of the festive season, participants and spectators took the chance to escape from the freezing cold temperatures of wintertime in Seoul and their last-minute Christmas shopping to witness Kim Gwan-hyeong defeat Kim Sung-jun in the final of the first Asian FIFA Interactive Word Cup qualifiers.
After cruising to a 4-0 victory, Gwan-hyeong said, “I didn’t think I was going to get to the final, but to gei there and win 4-0 was great. I am, very confident of winning the Grand Final.”
Although the majority of the entrants were from Seoul, there was one British representative, Aaron Knight, 22, from Bristol. Having competed in thc-2004 Interactive World Cup event in London, Knight though: his chances of competing again had passec when he left England in 2006 and moved to Seoul with his Korean wife. Although he faiied to make it past the third round, he was still grateful to have had the opportunity to comoete again and he will now turn his attention to online qualification.
So as the year drew to a close, four of the 32 grand finalists had been confirmed and they will all be hoping that 2008 brings them even more success in Berlin in May. To find out how you can be part of this event and any of the remaining qualifiers, please visit the “Destination” page on www.FIFA.com/interactiveworldcup. Alternatively, if you are unable to attend any of the live qualifiers, you can still complete in the online qualification mode by registring on the website.