Suggesting once again that the FIFA saga might be beyond parody, the chief spokesman for world soccer’s governing body stepped down on Thursday, amid speculation that he was forced out for joking on Swiss television about the possible arrest of President Sepp Blatter.
The spokesman, Walter De Gregorio, “has decided to relinquish his office with immediate effect,” according to a statement released by the organization on Thursday.
Mr. Blatter was not mentioned in the brief press release, but it did include words of praise for the communications director from FIFA’s secretary general, Jérôme Valcke, who also featured in the joke Mr.