The decision by a number of leading World Cup sponsors – Sony, Adidas, Visa, Coca-Cola and Hyundai-Kia – to express concern publicly about allegations surrounding the election of Qatar as host of the event in 2022 has added a new dimension to the developing crisis facing Fifa, world football’s governing body.

索尼(Sony)、阿迪达斯(Adidas)、维萨(Visa)、可口可乐(Coca-Cola)和现代起亚(Hyundai-Kia)等多家世界杯主要赞助商决定，对围绕卡塔尔当选2022年世界杯主办国的相关指控公开表示担忧，此举在世界足球管理机构国际足联(Fifa)面临的危机中，加入新的变数。

In the final days leading up to a World Cup in Brazil, sponsors would expect to be maximising the return on their investment by fine-tuning promotional and hospitality programmes, not moving into crisis communications mode and being forced to defend their partnerships. Companies have invested hundreds of millions of dollars; for many it is the largest single global marketing initiative they undertake. With Fifa’s declared principles of integrity, ethics and fair play being brought into question, sponsors are fearing a backlash against their own brands.

在巴西世界杯开幕的前夕，赞助商会希望通过优化推广和观赛款待计划，为投资取得最大的回报，而不是进入危机公关模式，被迫对它们所投身的赞助合作关系展开辩护。企业已经投入了数亿美元；对不少企业而言，这是它们耗资最大的一笔全球营销行动。鉴于国际足联宣称的诚信、道德和公平竞赛原则遭到质疑，赞助商担忧它们自己的品牌也会引火烧身。

Neither Fifa nor its corporate partners can afford a continued slow release of revelations. The doomsday scenario for the companies is that the situation is allowed to drag on, turning one of the most powerful sports partnerships toxic. Fifa already has its hands full dealing with the constant threat of match fixing, and is now being accused of turning a blind eye to the biggest fix of all: the choice of who gets to host its main event.

无论是国际足联还是它的企业合作伙伴，都承担不起爆料持续下去的后果。对企业而言，最糟糕的莫过于这种局面拖下去，让本来最强大的体育赞助合作关系之一变成毒药。接二连三的操纵比赛丑闻已经让国际足联应接不暇，如今它又被指责对最大的一场操纵睁一只眼闭一只眼：关于世界杯主办权花落谁家的操纵。

Fifteen years ago, as marketing and broadcast director of the International Olympic Committee, I experienced a very similar crisis when allegations of inappropriate payments over the selection of Salt Lake City as host of the 2002 Winter Games began to emerge. Sponsors were challenged from all quarters to step forward and demand reform, with the media and politicians wading into the dispute.

15年前，作为国际奥委会(IOC)的营销和转播权总监，我经历了一场非常相似的危机：盐湖城当选2002年冬奥会主办城市，但有关申办过程中支付不当费用的指控浮出水面。在各方质问之下，赞助商站出来要求改革，媒体和政治人士加入争论。

The IOC, faced with potential extinction, set up a reform committee made up of a range of voices including chief executives from some of the Olympic sponsors as well as politicians from around the world. This combination gave the body credibility in the eyes of those raising questions. The panel came up with an overall package of 50 radical reforms ranging from changing the structure of membership to creating a more refined bidding process. The changes, which would normally have taken decades to pass, if they passed at all, were rushed through in months, allowing the IOC to become far stronger and more transparent.

存亡关头，国际奥委会成立了一个代表多方声音的改革委员会，委员包括奥运会赞助商的首席执行官，以及世界各地的政界人士。这样的人员搭配，使得委员会在质疑者的眼中有了可信度。委员会提出了总共包括50项大胆改革的方案，包括调整国际奥委会委员结构，以及改良申办过程。通常说来，这些改革就算能通过，也得花上好几十年。但这次，所有改革只用了几个月就纷纷通过，令国际奥委会变得更强大、更透明。

At the time, the leadership of the IOC understood the seriousness of the crisis but it was far from clear that all of its members did. Many simply saw the issue as an “Anglo-Saxon media debate” rather than a situation that was threatening the heart of the organisation. However, when the sponsors spoke up and made it clear that future funding of the Olympics was at stake, the problem could not be ignored.

与此同时，国际奥委会领导层认识到危机的严重性，但它远不清楚是否所有委员也认识到危机的严重性。许多人仅仅将问题视为“盎格鲁-撒克逊媒体的辩论”，而不是一场危及机构核心的局面。但当赞助商发出声音，明确表示可能收回奥运会的赞助资金时，问题便不容忽视。

Fifa has commissioned an independent report on the bidding process from Michael Garcia, a US lawyer. The sponsors will be looking to this report to get to the bottom of the matter, and allow Fifa to quickly bring an end to the situation. The world will need confidence that the bid process was fair, that Qatar won without any hint of impropriety. A whitewash risks being the beginning of the end.

国际足联已委托美国律师迈克尔•加西亚(Michael Garcia)就申办过程撰写一份独立调查报告。赞助商将通过报告了解事情真相，让国际足联快速解决问题。全世界需要确信申办过程是公平的，卡塔尔的胜出是干净的。如果试图粉饰，可能是国际足联末日的开始。

In the Machiavellian world of international sports politics, it is not beyond imagination that Fifa’s leadership even encouraged the sponsors to speak out – knowing that, as with the IOC, their actions could help drive through necessary reforms that would be otherwise impossible. International assemblies made up of more than 200 nations are not structured to take fast, decisive action – and their leaders know this. Though the world may believe presidents of global sports bodies have unfettered powers, this is rarely the case. They often struggle to drive any meaningful reform through bureaucratic bodies made up of multiple and conflicting national interests.

在充满权谋的国际体育政治圈，不难想象，国际足联的领导层甚至会鼓励赞助商大胆直言——因为他们知道，与国际奥委会一事相同，赞助商的行为可以推动必要的、在其他情况下无法实施的改革。从组织结构上说，由200多个国家组成的国际联合机构不可能快速果断地采取行动，它们的领导人也明白这点。虽然世界上的人们可能认为全球性体育机构的领导人拥有不受束缚的权力，但事实并非如此。在官僚主义盛行、各国利益互相冲突的机构中，他们常常很难推动任何有意义的改革。

The measure of a true leader is how they turn a crisis to their advantage. It can be a catalyst for making much-needed changes. The fact that World Cup sponsors are speaking out publicly may finally allow Sepp Blatter, Fifa’s longstanding president, to drive through the reforms that have long been sought, in much the same way as the IOC did 15 years ago.

衡量一个真正领导人的标准，是将危机化为主动的能力。危机可以成为推动亟需改革的催化剂。世界杯赞助商公开表态，可能最终将使长期任职的国际足联主席塞普•布拉特(Sepp Blatter)得以推动寻求已久的改革，就像国际奥委会15年前所做的那样。