FIFA vice-president Ángel Maria Villar closes International Congress

FIFA vice-president and former Athl. Bilbao player Ángel Maria Villar was the name chosen to close The Future of Football International Congress this week, with a nostalgic speech covering the last 40 years of football.

“I liked listening to the congress and I have to congratulate Sporting, in the name of its president, for this great initiative. I had the good fortune to be a football player and I trained as a player and a person at every level. Forty years ago fans, players, leagues and international organisations existed. Today, everything is still the same. If we look at the origins of football, it is the same now. Whoever decided how the game should work was not wrong, because today it still exists in a more perfected form," said the Spaniard, adding: "We should not break away from the past, but focus on integration, understanding and improvement. Football is in good hands and the introduction of new technologies should help referees, not replace them. Of course international competitions exist, but we have to respect national competitions, because they are what contributes to the development of football. I thank this Portuguese, European and global club for organising this congress."