Over the past several weeks, FIFA executives have been under investigation as well as arrested in the Baur au Lac Hotel on the shores of Lake Zurich. The reason for the arrests comes after extensive investigations for bribery and extorting money out of the FIFA for personal use such as vacations, cars, and expensive dinners and hotels.
Sepp Blatter
The president of FIFA, at the time, Sepp Blatter has been accused ofripping over $28 million between him and his fellow FIFA executives. Although, they have denied the allegations, proof shows the committee was unfairly spending money and treating elections. Through the scandal, the executives including Blatter apparently accepted bribes from Vladimir Putin to give Russia a chance to hold the World Cup in the form of a Pablo Picasso painting.
The Guardian explained what could potentially happen to the arrested executives and the how long this can stretch, “Criminal proceedings are likely to drag on for years. A new, independent body must take responsibility for definitively deciding whether there should be a re-vote on the 2018 and 2022 tournaments and clearing out the dead wood without fear or favour.”
What upsets the football community the most is how the money which Blatter spent was supposed to be spent. Rather than spending the money on developing the youth and push the next generation, he spent a majority of the money on private jets, explaining the use of these as bonuses awarded to many of the officials who were arrested with Blatter. With so many changes being made, FIFA will be getting a facelift after the resignation of Blatter.
This post was originally published on Etienne Kiss-Borlase’s Finance blog. For more info about Etienne, please visit his homepage.
Etienne Kiss-Borlase 