FIFA President Sepp Blatter said Monday the South African stadium stampede that left a policeman seriously injured is like a wake-up call to warn World Cup organizers. Blatter said FIFA regretted Sunday's incident at the World Cup warmup between Nigeria and North Korea, which left 16 people injured outside Makhulong Stadium in the township of Tembisa near Johannesburg. “I am sure, and you are sure, that this is like an alarm clock and this will not happen at any match at the World Cup,” Blatter said after a two-day meeting of FIFA's executive committee. “The security is always a matter for the state where the sport event is played. The FIFA organization, with all its ramifications, we have no police force. We cannot even take out a spectator from a stadium. We cannot do that. It is not possible.” “In terms of organization, please be sure that the level of organization we have at the World Cup is definitely higher than the one we have seen there,” said FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke, who was sitting alongside Blatter at the media briefing. FIFA said Sunday in a statement that the match had “no relation whatsoever with the operational organization of the 2010 FIFA World Cup,” and Nigeria media officer Idah Peterside said the match “was organized by the two FAs.” In other football issues FIFA said: The draw to decide the qualifying groups for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil will be made in July next year instead of December. Valcke said the new date would allow matches to be played in earlier slots in the international match calendar. Haiti will replace Cuba as CONCACAF's representative in the six-team boys' tournament at the 2010 Youth Olympic Games. The Aug. 14-26 event also includes host nation Singapore, Zimbabwe, Bolivia, Vanuatu and Montenegro. Blatter also said FIFA's ethics committee would not take any further action against the English Football Association and former chairman Lord Triesman, who made accusations of match-fixing against Spain and Russia. Brazil, England win There was also good news for five-time world champion Brazil who thrashed Tanzania 5-1 in Dar es Salaam with double strikes from Robinho in the first half and Ramires in the second plus a goal from playmaker Kaka. England striker Wayne Rooney was also on target in their labored 3-0 win over South African Premier League club Platinum Stars, though their overall performance did little to reinforce their position as one of the tournament favourites. Rooney, scorer of 25 goals for England, came on in the second half and was booked after several strong challenges before he netted the third goal seven minutes from time. Off the pitch, European champion Spain, which still at home, had to defend its alleged 600,000 euro ($716,400) individual player bonus if it wins the title. “You can comment and talk, especially at this time when everyone is suffering,” captain Iker Casillas said, referring to the economic crisis and soaring unemployment gripping Spain. “And I include myself in that because I have family and friends and cousins and they are also hurting because of the crisis. Everyone sees it one way, as they want, but you shouldn't mix one thing up with the other,” he said. Hooligans deported The specter of hooliganism and crowd trouble stalked the World Cup countdown Monday as a group of hardcore Argentine fans were deported. The arrests of the 10 fans at Johannesburg's international airport came after a tip-off that the so-called ‘ultras' would try to wreak havoc during the tournament in South Africa and as police vowed to bolster security. “Intelligence indicated that these persons would commit acts of public disorder, engage in acts of violence and provoke conflict with certain fans of opponent teams and other groups from Argentina,” a police statement said. Authorities in Buenos Aires handed their South African counterparts a list of 800 known football hooligans last week. The group were detained on Sunday after arriving on a flight from Luanda, and were deported Monday on a flight back to the Angolan capital, police said. Drogba rejoins team Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba rejoined his teammates at their training camp in the Swiss Alps Monday following surgery on his broken forearm, a team spokesman said. No decision has yet been taken on his fitness for the World Cup though, according to spokesman Ouattara Hegaud. Doctors operated on the fracture at a hospital in the Swiss capital Bern on Saturday, after the Chelsea player was hurt during the Ivorians' 2-0 win over Japan in a friendly the day before. The Chelsea star rejoined the group in the early afternoon ahead of an evening friendly match against a Swiss second division side in the Swiss city of Lausanne, Hegaud said, with Drogba set to watch from the sidelines. The squad is due to head out to South Africa Wednesday.
