Nothing lasts forever, yet with Sepp Blatter’s Presidency of FIFA many football fans are not so sure. Today, Prince Ali of Jordan announced his intention to challenge Blatter to the role in May’s election, emphasising the need to shift focus “away from administrative controversy and back to sport.”

Of course, a great deal has changed on and off the pitch since Blatter first took to the FIFA throne four terms ago in 1998, yet more recently, crisis after crisis, politically at least the organisation seems to be moving backward rather than forward.

In politics, whereas past US presidents have enjoyed going out on a high thanks to a two-term restriction, certain long-serving British premiers acting within a looser constitutional set-up have not been so fortunate. Unlike at the last two elections, Blatter, having overseen yet another term marred by allegations of corruption and other controversy, his nomination will not go uncontested.

Confirming he would stand again for President, in September 2014 Blatter claimed “a mission is never finished and my mission is not finished.” What this mission is, exactly, after 16 years remains unclear. More and more, it looks like clinging on to power rather than benefiting the beautiful game. “Farce” was the word BBC pundit Gary Lineker used to describe the organisation soon after Blatter’s announcement to seek re-election.

Politics and football are often intertwined. In football, like in politics, in a position of leadership one should seek not just to lead the congress that he or she is responsible to – be that the FIFA congress, a political party or parliament – but to also inspire the wider community.

While experience, loyalty or other factors may give Sepp Blatter the edge in May’s FIFA presidential election, it is the desperate lack of inspiration and trust among the global football community – amongst fans, players and pundits alike – that reaffirms the need for significant change at FIFA. Lucky for Sepp, it is the 209 member federations, rather than the fans, that will go to the poll.