ZURICH, Switzerland -- Sepp Blatter was re-elected FIFA president on Wednesday after a major bribery scandal left him as the only candidate to deal with a sport reeling from a wave of corruption allegations. Blatter, a 75-year-old Swiss executive who has been in office since 1998, was handed a final four-year term as head of footballs governing body in a vote at FIFAs congress. He won 186 votes out of 203 ballots. After a tense week of drama and controversy surrounding his unchallenged candidacy, Blatter was beaming as he came into the congress hall to a standing ovation and warm applause after the result was announced. "Vamos! Vamos! Vamos!" said an ebullient Blatter, using the Spanish term for "Lets go!" He immediately took steps toward major reform by winning the assemblys backing for his proposal to have future World Cup hosts selected in a vote of all 208 federations instead of the 24-man executive committee. The congress also endorsed his plans to revamp the ethics committee and bring in more transparency. Blatter said he also planned to appoint a woman to the executive committee. FIFA will meet again later this year to formally adopt the measures. "We will put FIFAs ship back on the right course in clear transparent waters," he said in French. "We will need some time. We cannot do it from one day to the next. Its a new challenge for me and I accept it." The election went ahead after Englands call for a postponement of Blatters unopposed "coronation" amid the ethics crisis was overwhelmingly rejected by the delegates. Englands FA chairman David Bernstein left ahead of the vote. Hours earlier, Blatter promised fundamental reform to tackle the scandals and vowed to let the 208 national federations choose the host of future World Cups instead of the 24-man executive committee. The re-election completed a frantic week for Blatter, who strained under the weight of accusations targeting the top echelons of FIFA and himself as guardian of the game and the World Cup. "We have been hit and I personally have been slapped," Blatter said. "I dont want that ever again." The impending election of an incumbent as the only candidate had dealt a serious blow to FIFAs democratic credentials over the past week. Blatters sole challenger, Qatari executive committee member Mohamed bin Hammam, withdrew from the race last weekend and was suspended pending a full probe into allegations of bribing Caribbean voters during the campaign. FIFA vice-president Jack Warner of Trinidad was also suspended for involvement in the alleged payoffs. Despite the bribery scandal that saw the heads of the Asian and CONCACAF confederations suspended, the overwhelming backing was a ringing endorsement for Blatter. "I am happy we are able to bring this solidarity, this unity in FIFA," Blatter said. Bernstein had called for a postponement of the election for several months to allow for the scandals to be cleared up, saying that "a coronation without an opponent provides a flawed mandate." However, 172 of the 208 delegations rejected Englands call, clearing the way for the election to proceed. Blatter said the worst scandal in the bodys history could be solved within FIFA itself and with him in charge. "The FIFA ship is in troubled waters but this ship must be brought back on the right track," Blatter said in an opening address. "I am the captain of the ship." "It is therefore my duty and responsibility to see to it that we get back on track." To make sure his legacy would not be seen as one of a leader who let the rot of corruption take over the worlds premier game, Blatter promised to improve decision-making and openness in FIFA. "Reforms will be made and not just touchups but radical decisions," Blatter said in his speech to the 208 delegations. He insisted that reform should come from within the FIFA family, snubbing calls for independent, outside oversight that many critics had insisted on and he himself had promised. IOC President Jacques Rogge told Blatter on the eve of the election that only drastic measures to improve democracy and transparency had saved the Olympic movement when it faced a similar corruption scandal in the run-up to the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games. "We have made mistakes, but we will draw our conclusions," Blatter said. Allegations of corruption in World Cup bidding have also roiled FIFA in recent weeks. On Monday, FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke was forced to acknowledge he had written in an email that Qatar "bought" the 2022 World Cup. He said he was only referring to Qatars formidable financial clout, and that he never accused the Gulf country of buying votes. On Wednesday, German federation President Theo Zwanziger said Qatars victory in Decembers vote should be reviewed in light of "speculations and corruption allegations." Qatar has denied any wrongdoing. In a major policy shift, Blatter said he would work to make sure that the awarding of future World Cup hosts would be decided in a vote of all federations instead of the two dozen executive committee members, several of whom have been involved in bribery scandals. Just ahead of the election, FIFAs financial officers highlighted the enormous importance of the sports showcase tournament. FIFA made a US$631 million profit in the four years leading up to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, registering $202 million of that in last year alone. The four-year financial cycle showed income of $4.19 billion from broadcast and commercial deals, with 87 per cent tied directly to the World Cup. So far, Blatters dogged determination to bring the World Cup to Africa with the successful staging of South Africa 2010 stands out as his legacy. In his last four years, his ability to reform the governance of the sport could mean as much for his place his history. A fourth term will give Blatter a total of 17 years at the head of FIFA. Add the 24 years of his predecessor Joao Havelange, and the sport will have been in the hands of just two men over the past four decades. ------ AP Sports writers Rob Harris and Graham Dunbar in Zurich and Nesha Starcevic in Frankfurt contributed to this report. Allen Robinson Jersey . MARIE, Mich. authenticjaguarsshop.com/Allen-Robinson-Jaguars-Jersey . The Whitecaps scored two goals in the final eight minutes to steal a 2-2 tie at Real Salt Lake on Saturday night. http://www.authenticjaguarsshop.com/Allen-Robinson-Jaguars-Jersey . -- Diego Chara scored in the opening minutes and the Portland Timbers boosted their playoff hopes with a 3-0 win over the New England Revolution Friday night. Blake Bortles Kids Jersey . -- For nearly 9 minutes, Arizona made defensive stop after stop. Marqise Lee Kids Jersey . Former Fiorentina striker Pablo Daniel Osvaldo, who scored a hat trick in last weekends 4-0 win against Siena, headed in a corner in stoppage time. The result left Fiorentina one point behind AC Milan in the race for third place and the final Champions League spot. MIAMI -- There was no protest and just one heckler. The only boos were directed toward the plate umpire, and by the eighth inning Ozzie Guillens Miami Marlins had the crowd in such a happy frenzy that the roar shook the clubhouse. Guillen made a victorious return to the dugout Tuesday night, and pitchers Josh Johnson and Heath Bell snapped out of early-season slumps to help beat the Chicago Cubs 5-2. When the dugout emptied and Guillen joined his players on the field for the postgame celebration, there were only cheers from the crowd. "It was great to perform and hug Ozzie again," Bell said. "We really want to win for him and try to put all that other stuff behind him." Guillen returned from a five-game suspension imposed after his comments praising Fidel Castro caused a backlash in South Florida, especially among Cuban Americans. Johnson allowed two runs in seven innings and Bell earned the save after several rocky outings. Streaking Hanley Ramirez broke a 2-all tie with a three-run homer in the eighth, his third. For Guillen, the win was a relief. "Thank God this day is over with," he said. No demonstrations targeted at Guillen were evident, although a screaming fan in the second deck did call the Marlins manager an insulting name several times midway through the game. There were boos when Guillen ran onto the field to complain about a call in the seventh inning, but they were for the ump. Guillen said what he heard from the crowd was supportive. "Everything was pretty nice," he said. "It made my day a little easier. I appreciate the way people were, not just with me but with the team." Some fans had pledged to stay away in protest. Announced attendance was 24,544, by far the smallest in five games at the Marlins new ballpark. The game was tied at 2 when Jose Reyes reached on an error by second baseman Darwin Barney to start the Miami eighth. "It seems like when something like that happens, something bad is going to happen," Barney said. "It was just not a good way to start that inning. Its my fault." Reyes took second on a passed ball and Emilio Bonifacio walked. Ramirez, who had a game-ending single in the 11th innning Sunday, followed with a homer off Rafael Dolis (0-1).dddddddddddd Johnson was in the clubhouse when Ramirez came through. "This thing was shaking," he said. "I was like, Something good must have happened." Ramirez has gone 8 for 12 with seven RBIs in the past three games to hike his average from .133 to .286. "Thats what Im here for -- to drive in runs," Ramirez said. With the retractable roof open on a 76-degree night, both teams struggled for runs much of the way. The Marlins went 2 for 10 with runners in scoring position, while the Cubs grounded into four double plays. Johnson had a solid outing for the first time in three starts, lowering his ERA from 8.38 to 5.94. "Two things very nice happened today besides the win," Guillen said. "One was seeing J.J. throw the ball the way he did. He needs that, and so do we. And the second thing was the opportunity for Heath Bell to go out there and do what he does best." Bell, an All-Star closer acquired during the Marlins off-season spending binge, pitched a perfect ninth for his first save in three chances. "It was like a huge weight off my back, plain and simple, Ill be honest," Bell said. "Im trying to get my teammates to trust me, and this is a good start." Steve Cishek (1-0) pitched a hitless eighth and has yet to allow run in eight games. The Cubs Ryan Dempster remained winless in 12 starts since Aug. 16 even though he lowered his ERA to 1.33. He pitched six innings and gave up two runs, both unearned because of his errant throw to first on a grounder. "I wish I could have thrown the ball better to first base," he said. "The results would have probably been different." The Cubs, who fell to 3-8, have scored a total of four runs in Dempsters three starts. NOTES: The Cubs Marlon Byrd went 0 for 3 and is off to a 2-for-34 start (.059). ... Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton was dropped to sixth in the order and remains without a homer in 38 at-bats. ... The Cubs wont face former teammate Carlos Zambrano in the series. Hes slated to start Friday at Washington. ... Marlins Park is the 119th ballpark in which the Cubs have played. ' ' '
