Governing Bodies
FIFA STILL CHASING MISSING $10.3 MILLION LINKED TO GERMANY 2006 WORLD CUP BID
BY MICHAEL HOUSTON
FIFA President Gianni Infantino says the organisation is still trying to get its money back despite a fraud trial over a CFH10 million (£8.3 million/$10.3 million/€9.5 million) payment in relation to the 2006 World Cup collapsing.
Infantino also hinted that the FIFA Ethics Committee will pursue its own investigation into the accused, according to Inside World Football.
Former leading German Football Association (DFB) officials Theo Zwanziger, Wolfgang Niersbach and Horst Schmidt, as well as former FIFA secretary general Urs Linsi, had been charged.
Prosecutors alleged that they misled the DFB about the destination of the payment, yet the Swiss trial ended without a verdict in April after the five-year statute of limitations passed.
Legendary German footballer Franz Beckenbauer, who led Germany’s bid for the 2006 World Cup and was chairman of the Organising Committee, was under investigation but never charged owing to his health, according to the Office of the Attorney General.
The coronavirus pandemic contributed to the statute of limitations passing.
he DFB claims the payment was the return of a personal loan taken out by Beckenbauer from then-Adidas chief executive Robert Louis-Dreyfus, which went through a FIFA account, but investigators noted that the DFB had earmarked the payment as a contribution to a non-existent World Cup gala event.
Allegations have been raised over the legitimacy of the 2006 World Cup bid, which was successful by just a one-vote margin as Germany beat South Africa 12-11 in the final round.
The Office of the Attorney General claimed the money ended up in the possession of a Qatari company belonging to the disgraced Mohamed Bin Hammam, a former FIFA Executive and Finance Committee member who was banned from the sport for life for various offences in 2011.
“Of course we are not happy with the way the process was concluded,” Infantino said in a video press conference.
“Just because the process was not concluded in time, it doesn’t mean… we are going to sit down as if nothing happened.
“Ten million Swiss francs were paid out of a FIFA account.
“Even if it was many, many years ago – much earlier than when I became FIFA President – it’s something we cannot just sit still about and accept.”
Infantino also suggested the accused could still be held accountable by FIFA.
“We will continue to analyse this and we also have our ethic bodies as well who are looking into it,” he added.
“Obviously they were all waiting for the outcome of the Swiss criminal process.
“The story has not finished, even if it concerns the past, we will not accept that 10 million Swiss francs can just go out without a proper reason.”
FIFA has been dogged by corruption scandals for much of the last decade, with investigations into some still ongoing.
Earlier this week, former FIFA deputy secretary general Markus Kattner was banned from football for 10 years after being found guilty of conflicts of interest and abusing his position in the wake of an illicit bonus and pay rise scheme.
Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter and ex-secretary general Jérôme Valcke, who were also implicated in the investigation, are serving six- and 10-year bans from the sport respectively.
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Governing Bodies
FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Congo officials over financial misconduct
FIFA’s ethics committee launched disciplinary proceedings against three senior Congolese Football Federation (FECOFOOT) officials on Wednesday, including president Jean-Guy Mayolas, over allegations of financial misconduct.
Mayolas, his wife and his son were sentenced to life in prison earlier this month after a criminal court in the Congolese capital, Brazzaville, convicted them of embezzling $1.1 million in FIFA funds. Media reports said their whereabouts were not known , and they were tried in absentia.
FECOFOOT general secretary Wantete Badji and treasurer Raoul Kanda are also subject to the disciplinary proceedings, FIFA said. Badji and Kanda were sentenced to five years each in prison by the court in Brazzaville for related charges.
“These proceedings follow the receipt of information and documents during an audit,” FIFA said in a statement.
-Reuters
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The World Anti-Doping Agency is considering rewriting its rules to try barring President Donald Trump and all U.S. government officials from attending the LA Olympics in 2028, in a move that could also have implications for the World Cup being hosted by the U.S. this summer.
The proposal, on the agenda for next Tuesday’s meeting of the global drug-fighting watchdog’s executive committee, is the latest manoeuvre to come out of a yearslong refusal of the U.S. government to pay its annual dues to WADA.
The refusal is part of the American government’s unanimous, bipartisan protest of the agency’s handling of a case involving Chinese swimmers and other issues.
The Associated Press learned of the agenda item through correspondence it obtained between WADA and European officials involved in the agency’s decision-making. Two others with knowledge of the agenda confirmed the existence of the rules proposal to AP; they were not authorised to speak publicly about the agenda, which has not been released publicly.
The proposal was, in fact, first brought up in 2024, when U.S. authorities successfully lobbied for its rejection. The U.S. has since lost its seat on the executive committee.
“In spite of WADA’s increasing threats, we continue to stand firm in our demand for accountability and transparency from WADA to ensure fair competition in sport,” said Sara Carter, the director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).
The rule, if passed, would figure to be mostly symbolic, given the limits an international sports federation could have on the president of a country attending an event inside his own borders.
“I have never heard of a $50-million-budget Swiss foundation being able to enforce a rule to, for example, prevent the United States president from going anywhere,” said Carter’s predecessor at ONDCP, Rahul Gupta, who was on the WADA executive committee two years ago and led the movement to reject the proposal. “And the next question you have to ask is: How are you going to enforce it? Are they going to post a red notice from Interpol? It’s ludicrous. It’s clear they have not thought this through.”
In a news release after this story published, WADA said the AP story was “entirely misleading,” focusing on Fitzgerald’s statement to the AP that if proposals being discussed were “introduced, given that the rules would not apply retroactively, the FIFA World Cup, LA and Salt Lake City Games (in 2034) would not be covered.”
Fitzgerald’s only answer to three emails from AP seeking clarification on his initial response — specifically about how a rule that had not yet been adopted could or couldn’t be applied retroactively on events that are scheduled for the future — was: “I’m trying to say that it would not apply retroactively so those events would not be covered. Given that and the next meeting of the Board being scheduled for November, I don’t see how it could come into play for this year’s World Cup.”
-AP
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The Confederation of African Football has dismissed Yasin Osman Robleh, the Djiboutian official who headed its judicial bodies for the past six years, in a move aimed at restoring confidence in the organisation’s disciplinary processes.
According to reports from convergence sources, the decision was confirmed on Saturday by CAF Secretary General Veron Mosengo-Omba, bringing an abrupt end to Robleh’s tenure overseeing the confederation’s disciplinary and investigative committees since 2019.
Robleh’s position reportedly came under increasing pressure following the controversy surrounding sanctions imposed after the Africa Cup of Nations Final between Morocco and Senegal. The disciplinary decisions that followed the match sparked criticism from several quarters and placed CAF’s legal framework under intense scrutiny.
In response to the situation, CAF’s Executive Committee has appointed Togolese lawyer Cedric Egai, currently the confederation’s Director of Legal Affairs, as interim head of the judicial bodies.
Egai is expected to stabilise the organisation’s legal arm while CAF works toward appointing a permanent successor to Robleh.
Disciplinary Decisions Delayed
The leadership change has already affected ongoing disciplinary processes within the confederation. CAF’s disciplinary committee reportedly held hearings last Thursday on several cases, including the high-profile encounter involving Egypt’s Al Ahly and Morocco’s AS FAR.
However, decisions on those matters have been temporarily put on hold pending the confirmation of new leadership within the judicial structure.
Sources indicate that once a permanent successor is appointed, CAF will move swiftly to conclude outstanding disciplinary rulings affecting both clubs and national teams.
Restoring Confidence
The move is widely seen as part of CAF’s effort to restore confidence in its judicial system following weeks of controversy surrounding disciplinary decisions at major competitions.
Robleh’s departure closes a significant chapter in CAF’s legal administration, while Egai’s interim appointment signals a potential shift in leadership and governance at a critical time for African football.
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