Governing Bodies

Swiss appeals court convicts ex-FIFA General Secretary Valcke

Published

3 years ago

June 24, 2022

A Swiss appeals court found former FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke guilty of forging documents and accepting bribes in a case involving World Cup media rights, it said on Friday.

The 61-year-old, who was secretary general of the world soccer body from 2007 to 2015, was sentenced to 11 months in jail and fined 20,000 Swiss francs ($20,900). Both penalties were suspended.

Valcke had been cleared by a lower court in 2020 of accepting bribes and aggravated criminal mismanagement, but Swiss prosecutors appealed against that verdict.

The benefits Valcke – who the appeals court acquitted on a separate charge of aggravated dishonest management – allegedly received included the rent-free use of a villa in Sardinia.

The property was owned by Nasser Al-Khelaifi, chairman of French soccer club Paris Saint-Germain and of Qatar-based media group beIN Sports.

Valcke was also accused of accepting payments worth 1.25 million euros ($1.32 million) from a third defendant, a Greek businessman also convicted of bribery by the appeals court, linked to the awarding of media rights for FIFA World and Confederations Cups

The appeals trial of Valcke and Al-Khelaifi, who had denied bribery charges, was held in March.

The appeals court, which reached its verdicts on Thursday, acquitted Al-Khelaifi of inciting Valcke to commit criminal mismanagement.

Al-Khelaifi, 48, had denied at the appeals trial that he had struck a “corrupt arrangement” with Valcke. “That is totally wrong. It’s a false accusation,” he testified.

Valcke, who has been banned from all football-related activity until mid-2032 by FIFA’s ethics committee, told the appeals court his professional and financial situation had deteriorated since 2015 as he had no income.

“My health is all I have left,” he said.

Valcke had said he had asked Al-Khelaifi to help him as a friend back in 2013 because he was facing difficulties financing the purchase of the villa and of a new boat.

Valcke also said his request was not related to negotiations going on at the same time for World Cup media rights, adding the contract signed between beIN Sports and FIFA, also a party in the case, was financially very attractive for the world soccer body.

-Reuters

Governing Bodies

Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council

Published

4 hours ago

April 26, 2025

Kunle Solaja

Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.

The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).

The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.

Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.

He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.

An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.

He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.

“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”

Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.

“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.

He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.

“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.

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Governing Bodies

Ex-FIFA Council member and Mali football chief released from jail

Published

3 days ago

April 23, 2025

Kunle Solaja

A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.

Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.

He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.

The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.

He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.

Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.

While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.

-Reuters

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Governing Bodies

Nigeria Football Federation denies owing late national captain and coach, Chukwu

Published

2 weeks ago

April 14, 2025

Kunle Solaja

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has denied reports of an outstanding debt to former captain Christian Chukwu and has challenged anyone with verifiable documents to prove otherwise.

Chukwu, a former national team captain and chief coach, died last Saturday.

The Nigeria Football Federation decried statements in a section of social media that the football-ruling body was indebted to the deceased.

Reacting to one statement on social media that claimed NFF owed the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations-winning team captain the sum of $128,000, NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said: “There is no record in the NFF of any outstanding indebtedness to ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu.

“During the first term of the Board headed by Amaju Pinnick, a committee was set up to diligently peruse the papers of coaches who were being owed, even from previous NFF administrations.

“That committee was given the clear mandate to verify all debts and ensure that the coaches being owed were paid immediately. I am aware that the ‘Chairman’ was in the employ of the NFF between 2002 and 2005, before he was relieved of the post following the 1-1 draw with Angola in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Kano in August 2005. There is certainly no record of indebtedness to him in the NFF.”

Sanusi challenged anyone with genuine and verifiable documents of NFF indebtedness to any coach, who has worked with any of the National Teams over the past two decades, to come forward and tender those documents.

“As a credible organization that is very much alive to its responsibilities, if we are confronted with any genuine document of indebtedness to any coach, we will offset the debt immediately.”

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