ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) — The head of FIFA’s discrimination task force says the panel is not contacting 2018 World Cup host Russia about a controversial anti-gay law.

FIFA vice-president Jeffrey Webb says its president Sepp Blatter and secretary general Jerome Valcke “are in discussions with the Russian authorities”.

FIFA joined the IOC seeking clarification from Russia ahead of next February’s Sochi Olympics and the World Cup about applying a new law banning promotion of “nontraditional” lifestyles to minors.

Webb says FIFA “does not tolerate or accept any form of discrimination”.

Still, his panel which met yesterday doesn’t plan to send guidelines to Russia and 2022 World Cup host Qatar, where homosexual acts are illegal.

Webb says the task force’s work “has to have the universality of the 209 (nation) membership of FIFA”.

Meanwhile, the Caymanian urged national football associations and the public to get onside, saying it was the only way to transform on-paper policies into reality.

“It’s not only up to FIFA to implement the key decisions adopted by the Congress with regard to the fight against discrimination and racism,” Webb told a meeting of the world football governing body’s anti-racism arm.

“The implementation process needs to be fully supported by all member associations and society as a whole,” Webb was quoted as saying in a FIFA statement.

Webb, who is also president of CONCACAF, is overseeing a stepped-up drive against racism launched by FIFA in May.

On the table at Thursday’s meeting at FIFA’s Swiss headquarters were issues including the allocation of resources to campaigns against racism and discrimination, the sharing of best practice among national associations, and how to recruit and train anti-discrimination officials.

In addition, the meeting looked at measures to help identify games were racism was a high risk.

The new FIFA measures, adopted all-but unanimously by its ruling Congress in Mauritius in May, pave the way for tougher sanctions in cases of racism.

The measures include points deductions and even relegation for sides that are repeat offenders, and lengthy bans for individual perpetrators.

After what appeared to have been a rollback of racism in many European leagues, football’s image has been tainted by several high-profile cases in the recent past.

They range from Liverpool striker Luis Suarez’s abuse of Manchester United’s Patrice Evra in October 2011 to AC Milan midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng’s decision to walk off the field following abuse from the stands during a friendly game in January this year.

On the international level, meanwhile, high-profile racist incidents such as the abuse of Italy’s black striker Mario Balotelli by Croatia fans at Euro 2012 have grabbed headlines.