Swiss make more arrests in Federation Internationale de Football Association corruption scandal

“Soccer United Marketing is proud to be selected, along with our partners IMG, as the commercial rights partner of the Copa America Centenario 2016”, said Kathy Carter, SUM President.

Jose Margulies: The controlling principal of Valente Corp. and Somerton Ltd, who served as an intermediary who facilitated illicit payments between sports marketing executives and soccer officials, pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy and two counts of money laundering conspiracy.

CONMEBOL is the soccer federation overseeing the game in South America and CONCACAF is the ruling body for the sport in North America, South America and the Caribbean.

U.S. Soccer released a statement Thursday saying that the 2016 Copa America Centenario will go on as planned, despite the arrests of CONCACAF president Alfredo Hawit and CONMEBOL president Juan Angel Napout. Amazingly, he is now a member of FIFA’s Audit and Compliance Committee – one of FIFA’s sub-committees charged with developing reform proposals. They include former Panamanian FA president Ariel Alvarado, current Guatemala FA president Brayan Jiménez and the former president of Honduras Rafael Callejas who was also the former president of the Honduran FA.

The rights were initally sold to Datisa, formed by three South American marketing agencies, Traffic, Torneos and Full Play, with the intent to hand out bribes of $110 million to officials from Concacaf, Conmebol and South American federations for the rights to three Copa Americas and the Copa Centenario.

Fourteen men were charged in May, when four additional guilty pleas were unsealed, with prosecutors alleging bribes involving the media and marketing rights for the Copa America, the CONCACAF Gold Cup, World Cup qualifiers and other competitions.

They are the third past or current presidents of each continental body to be indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice since May in a case that has shattered the reputations of soccer leaders in Latin America.

“Events underscore the necessity to establish a complete program of reforms for FIFA today”, said interim FIFA President Issa Hayatou, who stepped in when Blatter was suspended.

FIFA’s executive committee is considering expanding the World Cup to 40 teams at a meeting in Zurich on Thursday, according to a person with direct knowledge of the talks.

U.S. Department of Justice officials were expected to appear at a news conference in Washington as soon as Thursday to discuss the case, people familiar with the plans said. Future presidents and council members will be limited to 12 years in office and face stricter integrity checks.

“It was like someone had died, that was the atmosphere inside”, Sarney said.

Chilean soccer federation president Sergio Jadue resigned also last month and travelled to Miami, amid media reports he was co-operating with USA investigators.

Federation Internationale de Football Association president Sepp Blatter wins a 5th term after Prince Ali conceeds election.

The country’s attorney general announced on Thursday that a further 16 officials, primarily from the CONCACAF and CONMEBOL member associations, had been charged with corruption following an extensive investigation.

Swiss police arrested the two top soccer bosses in the Americas yesterday on suspicion of taking millions of dollars in bribes linked to television rights, widening a graft probe into world soccer’s governing body.