FIFA has ruled out a re-vote on awarding the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar as Swiss authorities prepare to question ten executive committee members about the corruption-tainted bidding process.
The United States Department of Justice brought charges on racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering on 14 FIFA and sports marketing officials. Dubbed the “World Cup of corruption” by Richard Weber, chief of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation unit, the charges are the result of an investigation from the U.S. District Attorney’s office in Eastern New York.
UEFA president Michel Platini blasted Sepp Blatter for lying about his pledge to step down in 2015 and throws his support behind presidential challenger Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein.
Unless something dramatic happens, Sepp Blatter will on Friday emerge victorious from his latest FIFA presidential battle. Despite the challenge from Jordanian Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein, the 79-year-old Swiss is widely expected to secure the majority of votes of the 209 member federations in the secret ballot, reports World Football Insider.
Chuck Blazer, once the most powerful man in US soccer, was an FBI informant used to spy on Fifa, the New York Daily News reports. Blazer, who is now suffering from cancer, secretly recorded conversations with officials he arranged to meet at his London hotel during the 2012 Olympics, the report said.
FIFA’s ethics judge says full publication of Michael Garcia’s report on alleged corruption in the 2018/2022 World Cup bidding race is not legally possible and would breach confidentiality agreements with interviewees.
Sepp Blatter says a report into allegations of corruption in the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding contests will not be made public. During a press conference wrapping up a two-day executive meeting, the FIFA president said that the report by the federation’s chief investigator Michael Garcia will not be published.
FIFA vice-president Jeffrey Webb has called for Michael Garcia’s report into the corruption-tarnished World Cup bidding process to be published. The CONCACAF president made his declaration at the Soccerex Global Convention in Manchester on Tuesday.
Sepp Blatter has confirmed he will run for a fifth, four-year term as FIFA president. Buoyed by a successful World Cup in Brazil and UEFA President Michel Platini opting not to stand in next year’s election, the 78-year-old Blatter believes he has the backing to win again.
Rio do Janeiro state police said Monday they arrested the head of the soccer world governing body's hospitality provider, accusing him of aiding scalpers who illegally resold World Cup tickets worth an estimated 100 million dollars.