FIFA tells refs to delay matches, keep crowds safe

ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) — FIFA has announced that World Cup match referees have the authority to delay kickoffs for safety reasons after 19 fans were killed in a stampede at a stadium in the Ivory Coast.

Soccer's world governing body also asked each of the 52 national federations in Africa to send security specialists to a meeting in Cairo next month.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter told members of the stadium and security committee that "not one human life should be put in the balance by football."

The committee backed a proposal giving power to referees and FIFA match delegates working at World Cup qualifiers to delay the start of games.

Referees "should therefore not start a match unless security is established outside the stadia and spectators have taken their seats," FIFA said in a statement Monday.

The Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan had a 35,000 capacity limit but many more came to see star striker Didier Drogba play at home for the first time this season when Ivory Coast and Malawi played March 29. Nineteen people and more than 130 were injured in the crush, but the match went ahead after order was restored.

FIFA has asked for reports from the Ivorian soccer federation and local government authorities to establish what happened. Eyewitnesses reported that panic spread after police fired tear gas into the crowd.

Fans have also died in stadium crushes in Zimbabwe, Ghana and Congo in recent years after tear gas was used.

Ivory Coast is scheduled to play its next home World Cup qualifier Sept. 5 against Burkina Faso.

FIFA's stadium committee, which met last week, confirmed that each of soccer's six continental confederations will hold a summit of security officers in the next year. It also acted against two African countries whose national stadium fell short of current regulations.

Kenya must limit attendance to 60 percent of the 30,000 capacity at the Nyayo Stadium in Nairobi for its remaining home World Cup qualifiers. It hosts Mozambique on June 20 and Nigeria on November 14.

Malawi must play its next three home matches away from the Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre if the federation misses a May 15 deadline to comply with safety standards.