FIFA eases strict rules that guide appointing top officials (The Associated Press)

The strict rules FIFA passed in February to oversee its top officials seem to have been relaxed and do not need to be applied to the letter, months after the scandal-scarred soccer body hailed them as crucial to rebuilding trust following the corruption-tainted years of Sepp Blatter's presidency. Amid claims that FIFA's new audit panel chairman from Slovenia fails to meet independence criteria demanded for the job, FIFA clarified on Friday how its governance regulations can be interpreted. FIFA appointed Slovenia state auditor Tomaz Vesel in July as an apparent outsider with no formal soccer links to oversee its billion-dollar annual spending.