On Feb. 4, the soccer world was rocked by yet another scandal when Europol, the European Union's law enforcement agency, released a report indicating that more than 680 matches had been fixed in leagues around the world over the past several years. In addition, almost 500 match officials, players and club officials were indicted in the report.

Essentially, match-fixing is the arranging of the outcome of a match or an event during the match. This is achieved by bribing players or officials, all for the purpose of making money. Though Europol has not said which matches were fixed, the agency officials did mention in a press conference that a UEFA Champions League match in England, which had taken place within the past few years, was one of the matches under suspicion. The fixing of friendly matches, where the most pressing aim is making sure none of the players get hurt, is nothing new, but the fixing of a key match in the world's premier club competition certainly is.    

One might be forgiven for hoping that Europol's report would concern the most important man in the world game. Sepp Blatter, however, the current president of FIFA, appears unconcerned. This past Saturday, Mr. Blatter stated his belief that "Football is so big, we will overcome…It (match-fixing) is a small percentage. Football will not die." Blatter, however, has shown a history of mismanagement and poor decisions that should leave people questioning his quick dismissal of the report. Last year, he was accused of covering up a bribery scandal where several of his lieutenants were pocketing large sums of money for awarding various marketing contracts and TV rights packages to specific firms. In a press conference held by FIFA to address the bribery claims, Blatter mocked journalists who asked whether he should consider stepping down as a result of his alleged actions. Two years ago, Blatter once again demonstrated his senseless side when he suggested that racism does not exist on a soccer pitch despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary and in the midst of the beginning of FIFA's "Kick Racism Out of Football" campaign. Most recently, Blatter criticized the MLS for its quality of play and its supposed lack of support in American society. Without delving into the facts and figures, it should suffice to say that his claims are extremely off base and once again provide evidence of his ignorance of soccer outside of Europe. As a result of his relative disinterest in worldwide leagues, he is unable to effectively manage FIFA on a global level, let alone fix the problems that are currently plaguing his organization.

Despite these issues, and several others, Blatter was recently re-elected by member countries who were afraid of voting against him to serve another term as the head of soccer's governing body. Though his re-election disappointed many, there existed some amount of hope that he would rise to the occasion and help implement reforms within FIFA. His reaction to the Europol report, however, indicates business as usual has resumed for the Blatter administration. Such a reaction is not only a bad sign for the rest of Blatter's term, but also for the direction the game is taking as a whole.

Already tarnished by overpriced tickets, consistent racism by players and officials, rampant diving, and general mismanagement, the revelation of widespread match-fixing has removed even more sheen from soccer's once burnished image. A Russian composer by the name of Dmitri Shostakovich once said, "Football is the ballet of the masses." That was several decades ago; today, Sepp Blatter's incompetence has allowed our beloved ballet to suffer from a match-fixing scandal that strikes at the very core of the game. Before further damage can be done, it is time for Mr. Blatter to step up, make changes and pursue those whose thirst for profit is damaging the most beautiful game more and more with each passing day.

Reach Staff Writer Christopher Coppock here or follow him on Twitter.