FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida — FIFA president Joseph ‘Sepp’ Blatter has reiterated his call for stiffer penalties for offenders of the Code of Conduct addressing the scourge of racism and discrimination in football.

Blatter, speaking at the 30th CONCACAF Ordinary Congress in the Bahamas last week Thursday, said FIFA must get tougher in its fight against this monster, and has expressed confidence that the sport will eventually be free of it.

“We need stronger fines and action, and I bet that eventually racism will go out of football,” said the 79-year-old Swiss.

“We have to use our rules to suspend teams, to take away their points or even to relegate them if racism continues,” Blatter has repeatedly been quoted as saying.

In response to calls to address the matter which has scarred the sport for years, FIFA commissioned a special body to tackle racism and discrimination head on and appointed CONCACAF president Jeffrey Webb to lead the charge.

“I am fighting with you (Webb), FIFA is fighting with you and I wish you good luck in your efforts,” said Blatter, pledging support for the chairman of the FIFA Anti-Racism and Discrimination Task Force.

Blatter expressed disappointment that football, which is a tested tool of uniting people, is threatened by forces more inclined to divide.

“Football should connect people and not to disconnect; it should include and not exclude, and it is something that brings hope, and I am hopeful,” he said.

Blatter, who is seeking a fifth term as FIFA president at the May 29 polls in Zurich, underlined the importance of CONCACAF, in not only the fight against discrimination, of all variety, but football as a whole.

“CONCACAF has a big part to play in FIFA; it is a big confederation and one of diversity of cultures and languages,” he noted.

Webb, who was returned unopposed as president of CONCACAF at last week’s congress, said he was dedicated to playing his part in reducing, if not stamping out, racism from the “beautiful game”.

“It’s a process that I am committed to as it’s a matter that has no place in our sport. It’s indeed a complex battle ground, but the task force and FIFA and the frontline team have the will and the resources to succeed. And we will succeed,” the Caymanian told the Jamaica Observer.

At the moment, first or minor offences will be punished by a warning, fine or a match being played without spectators.

Serious or repeat offences may be punished by a loss of points, expulsion from a tournament or relegation of the club.

Players or officials who engage in racist abuse in any game, not just FIFA internationals, will be banned for five matches.

Also, the task force will have officers strategically placed inside stadia to detect potential acts of racism and discrimination, and to report on the acts themselves. Referees will be freed of this responsibility so they can concentrate on the game.

In a famous case of racism during a game, AC Milan’s Ghanaian star Kevin-Prince Boateng walked off the field after he was subjected to racist chanting during a friendly match against Pro Patria, a team from a lower Italian league.

The African’s teammates — black and white — in a moving act of solidarity followed him off the pitch, forcing an abandonment of the game.

Boateng was again targeted along with his Milan teammate Mario Balotelli during a top-flight match against AS Roma. The game was held up for two-minutes as Roma players begged their fans to stop.

Italian football authorities were harshly criticised for what is viewed as a “slap on the wrist,” $65,000 fined imposed on Roma.

In FIFA’s Code of Conduct, racism in football has been articulated as: “Discrimination of any kind against a country, private person or group of people on account of race, skin colour, ethnic, national or social origin, gender, language, religion, political opinion or any other opinion, wealth, birth or any other status, sexual orientation or any other reason[ and] is strictly prohibited and punishable by suspension or expulsion.”