What has happened?
Six officials at Fifa — the Federation Internationale de Football Association, the governing body of world football — have been arrested at a hotel in Zurich, Switzerland, on suspicion of receiving bribes totalling $100 million (Dh365 million). They were arrested before FIFA’s annual general meeting on Friday in an early-morning raid by Swiss police, acting on a request from the US authorities. The officials are all facing extradition to the US.
Who was arrested?
Jeffrey Webb, president of the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) and a major figure in Fifa politics, was among those detained. His predecessor, Jack Warner, was also arrested, according to the New York Times. The others held by Swiss police are: Eugenio Figueredo, a Uruguayan Association football executive and former footballer; Eduardo Li, president of the Costa Rican football federation; Julio Rocha, a Fifa development officer; Rafael Esquivel, president of the Venezuelan Football Federation; Jose Maria Marin, president of the Brazilian Football Confederation, and Nicolás Leoz, the former South American football president. Another suspect was named as Costas Takkas.
Up to 15 officials are understood to be under investigation worldwide, so the arrests on Wednesday morning may be just the start.
Was Fifa president Sepp Blatter arrested?
No. Fifa are due to hold a press conference at 10am GMT when they will address the arrests, but so far football’s world governing body has declined to comment. Blatter’s Twitter account, which recently celebrated FIFA’s 111th birthday, has remained silent on the arrests.
What do the charges involve?
The charges include money laundering, racketeering and wire fraud. The Swiss Federal Office of Justice said the bribery suspects — representatives of sports media and sports promotion firms — are alleged to have been involved in schemes to make payments to delegates of Fifa and other functionaries of Fifa sub-organisations totalling more than $100 million. In return, it is believed they received media, marketing, and sponsorship rights in connection with football tournaments in Latin America.
Why were the arrests made now?
Swiss police appear to have timed the arrests to occur before FIFA’s annual general meeting on Friday, when they knew that a significant number of their suspects would be in the same city. Not just the same city, but the same hotel. The raid on the Baur au Lac, a luxury hotel with views overlooking the Alps, has long been favoured by Fifa officials visiting Zurich.
Why are US authorities investigating Fifa?
The US attorney general is due to hold a press conference on Wednesday when more details will become clear. However, the FBI has been investigating the process that led to the award of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals to Russia and Qatar respectively. News of the FBI investigation emerged in March 2013 with further details reported in November last year. It was reported that Chuck Blazer, a former Fifa executive committee member, was cooperating with the inquiry after he was approached over huge unpaid tax bills related to commissions he had received during his time as Concacaf general secretary.
Who is Chuck Blazer?
Chuck Blazer is a former Fifa executive committee member. Days before he was due to stand down in May 2013, he was suspended from football for 90 days by Fifa amid allegations he fraudulently received more than $20 million from Concacaf.
The 70-year-old football chief has also held senior posts in America and is credited with turning the sport into a booming success in the US. And while US soccer’s fortunes flourished, so did Blazer’s. He earned the nickname Ten Percent after reportedly negotiating an extraordinary contract with Concacaf that entitled him to 10 per cent of just about every penny the body brought in. His colourful jet-set lifestyle matched his exuberance, and when he wasn’t living in his $18,000-a-month Manhattan apartment, he was probably relaxing at his luxury condo in the Bahamas.
Last November it emerged Blazer was cooperating with a US investigation into Fifa. Investigators were said to have approached Blazer in 2011 after allegedly discovering huge unpaid tax bills related to commissions he had received during his time as Concacaf general secretary. The New York Daily News, which broke the story in November 2014, reported that Blazer had secretly recorded Fifa executives for US investigators using a keychain fitted with a covert recording device.
Who is on the list?
Nine of the defendants were Fifa officials by operation of the Fifa statutes, as well as officials of one or more other bodies:
Jeffrey Webb: Current Fifa vice-president and executive committee member, Concacaf president, Caribbean Football Union executive committee member and Cayman Islands Football Association president.
Eduardo Li: Current Fifa executive committee member-elect, Concacaf executive committee member and Costa Rican soccer federation president.
Julio Rocha: Current Fifa development officer. Former Central American Football Union president and Nicaraguan soccer federation president.
Costas Takkas: Current attaché to the Concacaf president. Former Cifa general secretary.
Jack Warner: Former Fifa vice-president and executive committee member, Concacaf president, CFU president and Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation special adviser.
Eugenio Figueredo: Current Fifa vice-president and executive committee member. Former Conmebol president and Uruguayan soccer federation president.
Rafael Esquivel: Current Conmebol executive committee member and Venezuelan soccer federation president.
Jose Maria Marin: Current member of the Fifa organising committee for the Olympic football tournaments. Former CBF president.
Nicolas Leoz: Former Fifa executive committee member and Conmebol president.
Four of the defendants were sports marketing executives:
Alejandro Burzaco: Controlling principal of Torneos y Competencias S.A., a sports marketing business based in Argentina, and its affiliates.
Aaron Davidson: President of Traffic Sports USA Inc.
Hugo and Mariano Jinkis: Controlling principals of Full Play Group S.A., a sports marketing business based in Argentina, and its affiliates.
— Compiled from agencies and US Department of Justice
