International Football
FIFA BRIBE TAKERS CODED PAYMENTS WITH CAR NAMES
Surprising revelations are coming out from the court hearing the famous FIFA corruption trials holding in New York, US.
According to Associated Press, payments to the head of Peruvian soccer were masked under the name ”Fiat.” Money for Paraguay’s boss was listed as ”Honda.”
Excel spreadsheets detailed the cloak-and-dagger recording system of money given to ”Benz,” ”VW,” ”Toyota,” ”Kia,” and ”Peugeot,” among others, including a pair of payments labelled ”Q2022” that appeared to be related to the FIFA executive committee’s 2010 vote giving Qatar rights to host the 2022 World Cup.
”We basically decided to make up fantasy names for each of the people involved,” sports marketing executive Santiago Pena testified Monday as the trial of three high-ranking soccer executives entered its second week at federal court in Brooklyn.
Pena worked for Full Play Group, a company based in Argentina that won marketing rights to South American World Cup qualifiers and the Copa America and Copa Libertatores tournaments.
Hugo and Mariano Jinkis, a father and son who are Full Play’s controlling principals, were indicted along with many top soccer executives in 2015 by U.S. prosecutors. The father and son have not been extradited thus far.
Pena testified that he took the ledger from Full Play’s office on a thumb drive along with a stack of documents shortly after the first indictments were unsealed in May 2015 and kept the evidence at his home for two years before turning it over the American prosecutors.
Juan Angel Napout, the ex-president of Paraguay’s soccer federation; Jose Maria Marin, the former president of Brazil’s soccer federation; and Manuel Burga, the ex-head of Peru’s soccer federation; are on trial for racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy.
Rafael Esquivel, the former president of Venezuelan soccer, was nicknamed ”Benz” and his ledger listed a $750,000 payment owed for ”Q2022.” He pleaded guilty in November 2016 to racketeering conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud conspiracy and three counts of money laundering conspiracy.
Luis Chiriboga, the former president of Ecuadorean soccer, was nicknamed ”Toyota” and his ledger listed a $500,000 payment owed for ”Q2022.” He was convicted in his own country in November 2016 of money laundering.
Neither Esquivel nor Chiriboga was on the FIFA executive committee that made Qatar the 2022 World Cup host. M. Kristen Mace, the assistant U.S. attorney questioning Pena, did not ask whether the payments were to be redirected to others.
Other nicknames included ”VW” for Carlos Chavez of Bolivia, ”Honda” for Napout, ”Fiat” for Burga, ”Flemic,” for Luis Bedoya of Colombia, ”Kia” for Sergio Jadue of Chile and ”Peugeot” for Jose Meiszner, the former general secretary of the South American governing body CONMEBOL.
Pena said that as part of the contracts for the Copa America covering 2015, 2019 and 2023, plus the 2016 Centennial Copa America, payments were made to soccer federation presidents and the CONMEBOL general secretary, listing amount for various events plus for signing contracts. He said the money was not recorded on Full Play’s regular accounts.
”They were secret payments,” he said. Among the payments were some for the Copa Libertadores, even though Full Play did not hold rights. Pena said his bosses described them as loyalty payments.
Pena also testified about corporate sponsorship deals for the 2015 Copa: $9 million each for MasterCard and Banco Santander; $8 million for Kia Motors; $3.2 million for Coca-Cola and DHL; $3 million for Kellogg; and $1.5 million for LATAM Airlines.
He said that payments were made from Full Play directly to Venezuela’s players and coaches at the request of the nation’s federation to get around currency restrictions in that nation.
Pena also detailed $2 million in payments Full Play made to Soccer United Marketing, a marketing company of the U.S. Soccer Federation and Major League Soccer, for a pair of exhibition games involving Mexico in March 2015, against Ecuador and Paraguay. He said Full Play sold U.S. rights to World Cup qualifiers to BeIN Sports through a London-based company.
Before testimony, U.S. District Judge Pamela K. Chen said she denied the government’s request to remand Burga into custody but tightened restrictions on his cell phone use. Prosecutors said he made a slashing motion with a finger across his throat in a threatening gesture during the testimony of Alejandro Burzaco, another marketing executive.
Burga’s lawyer said he was scratching because of a skin condition.
International Football
Guinea names Portugal’s Duarte as new national coach

Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
International Football
Veteran coach Van Gaal says he is cured of cancer

Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
International Football
Like father like son, Davide Ancelotti becomes Brazil’s Botafogo manager

In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
- World Cup1 week ago
BREAKING: At last FIFA’s Axe falls on South Africa!
- World Cup1 week ago
South Africa to Appeal FIFA Ruling Over Mokoena Eligibility Case
- Nigerian Football1 week ago
Super Eagles Set for Double Friendly Showdown with Venezuela and Colombia in USA
- World Cup1 week ago
Sport Minister Orders Probe into SAFA over Bafana’s Costly Points Deduction
- World Cup6 days ago
FIFA Sanction on South Africa Offers Super Eagles a Lifeline — But a Lesson from History Looms
- CAF Confederation Cup1 week ago
Asante Kotoko End Kwara United’s Confederation Cup Campaign in Abeokuta
- U-20 FOOTBALL1 week ago
Two penalty appeal lost as Flying Eagles stumble at first hurdle
- World Cup4 days ago
Super Eagles Walk Tightrope as Nine Key Players Risk Suspension in World Cup Qualifiers