Football world rocked as 7 top Fifa officials held for graft
WASHINGTON: In a stunning move that shook the soccer world to its boots, plainclothes Swiss law-enforcement authorities swooped down on a five-star hotel in Zurich at the crack of dawn on Wednesday and — at the instance of US authorities — took into custody seven leading members of the sport's governing body Fifa who had gathered there ahead of a presidential vote this week.
The move followed the announcement in New York that the US justice department was charging 14 leader soccer officials and promoters from across the world with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies, among other offenses, in what it said was "a 24-year scheme to enrich themselves through the corruption of international soccer".
Swiss prosecutors, meanwhile, said they had opened their own criminal proceedings against the officials on suspicion of mismanagement and money laundering related to awarding of rights to host the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Data and documents were seized from computers at Fifa's Zurich headquarters.
Four individual defendants and two corporate defendants have already pleaded guilty, the justice department said on Wednesday, amid reports that those arrested in Switzerland would be extradited to the US for prosecution and trial. The American indictment was based on the money trail passing through the US banking system.
Defendants charged in the indictment include some of the highest-ranking Fifa officials such as current Fifa vice-president Jeffrey Webb and his predecessor Jack Warner, the current and former presidents of CONCACAF, the continental confederation under Fifa headquartered in the US. They also include several US and South American sports marketing executives who are alleged to have systematically paid and agreed to pay well over $150 million in bribes and kickbacks to obtain lucrative media and marketing rights to international soccer tournaments.
Fifa's four-term President Sepp Blatter, 79, the Swiss soccer supremo who was seeking a fifth term at Zurich, is not among those arrested.
Blatter has presided over the cash-rich body that has billions of dollars in revenue and some $1.5 billion in reserves, with an iron hand, frequently weathering reports of corruption. A small cabal runs the organization with little transparency or oversight, and reports of bribes and kickbacks, including to stage mega events such as the world cup soccer tournament in Qatar in 2018, are frequent.
"The indictment alleges corruption that is rampant, systemic, and deep-rooted both abroad and here in the United States," US attorney general Loretta Lynch, who was part of an investigation into the racket, said, adding that, "It spans at least two generations of soccer officials who, as alleged, have abused their positions of trust to acquire millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks."
Lynch said the corruption has "profoundly harmed a multitude of victims, from the youth leagues and developing countries that should benefit from the revenue generated by the commercial rights these organizations hold, to the fans at home and throughout the world whose support for the game makes those rights valuable".
The US crackdown followed investigations into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 soccer World Cups that were eventually won for hosting by Russia and Qatar respectively. Rumors swirled around Fifa officials who had demanded bribes for their votes, with the asking rate between $1.5 million to $2.5 million per vote.
"As charged in the indictment, the defendants fostered a culture of corruption and greed that created an uneven playing field for the biggest sport in the world. Undisclosed and illegal payments, kickbacks, and bribes became a way of doing business at Fifa," said FBI director James Comey, whose bureau investigated the scandal.
Said Richard Weber, chief of the IRS criminal investigation wing that also investigated the charges, "Corruption, tax evasion and money laundering are certainly not the cornerstones of any successful business. Whether you call it soccer or football, the fans, players and sponsors around the world who love this game should not have to worry about officials corrupting their sport. This case isn't about soccer, it is about fairness and following the law".
On its part, Fifa has promised to cooperate with US officials handling the case.
Football world rocked as 7 top Fifa officials held for graft - The Times of India
WASHINGTON: In a stunning move that shook the soccer world to its boots, plainclothes Swiss law-enforcement authorities swooped down on a five-star hotel in Zurich at the crack of dawn on Wednesday and — at the instance of US authorities — took into custody seven leading members of the sport's governing body Fifa who had gathered there ahead of a presidential vote this week.
The move followed the announcement in New York that the US justice department was charging 14 leader soccer officials and promoters from across the world with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies, among other offenses, in what it said was "a 24-year scheme to enrich themselves through the corruption of international soccer".
Swiss prosecutors, meanwhile, said they had opened their own criminal proceedings against the officials on suspicion of mismanagement and money laundering related to awarding of rights to host the 2018 World Cup in Russia and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Data and documents were seized from computers at Fifa's Zurich headquarters.
Four individual defendants and two corporate defendants have already pleaded guilty, the justice department said on Wednesday, amid reports that those arrested in Switzerland would be extradited to the US for prosecution and trial. The American indictment was based on the money trail passing through the US banking system.
Defendants charged in the indictment include some of the highest-ranking Fifa officials such as current Fifa vice-president Jeffrey Webb and his predecessor Jack Warner, the current and former presidents of CONCACAF, the continental confederation under Fifa headquartered in the US. They also include several US and South American sports marketing executives who are alleged to have systematically paid and agreed to pay well over $150 million in bribes and kickbacks to obtain lucrative media and marketing rights to international soccer tournaments.
Fifa's four-term President Sepp Blatter, 79, the Swiss soccer supremo who was seeking a fifth term at Zurich, is not among those arrested.
Blatter has presided over the cash-rich body that has billions of dollars in revenue and some $1.5 billion in reserves, with an iron hand, frequently weathering reports of corruption. A small cabal runs the organization with little transparency or oversight, and reports of bribes and kickbacks, including to stage mega events such as the world cup soccer tournament in Qatar in 2018, are frequent.
"The indictment alleges corruption that is rampant, systemic, and deep-rooted both abroad and here in the United States," US attorney general Loretta Lynch, who was part of an investigation into the racket, said, adding that, "It spans at least two generations of soccer officials who, as alleged, have abused their positions of trust to acquire millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks."
Lynch said the corruption has "profoundly harmed a multitude of victims, from the youth leagues and developing countries that should benefit from the revenue generated by the commercial rights these organizations hold, to the fans at home and throughout the world whose support for the game makes those rights valuable".
The US crackdown followed investigations into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 soccer World Cups that were eventually won for hosting by Russia and Qatar respectively. Rumors swirled around Fifa officials who had demanded bribes for their votes, with the asking rate between $1.5 million to $2.5 million per vote.
"As charged in the indictment, the defendants fostered a culture of corruption and greed that created an uneven playing field for the biggest sport in the world. Undisclosed and illegal payments, kickbacks, and bribes became a way of doing business at Fifa," said FBI director James Comey, whose bureau investigated the scandal.
Said Richard Weber, chief of the IRS criminal investigation wing that also investigated the charges, "Corruption, tax evasion and money laundering are certainly not the cornerstones of any successful business. Whether you call it soccer or football, the fans, players and sponsors around the world who love this game should not have to worry about officials corrupting their sport. This case isn't about soccer, it is about fairness and following the law".
On its part, Fifa has promised to cooperate with US officials handling the case.
Football world rocked as 7 top Fifa officials held for graft - The Times of India
