Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, RICO NEWS: DOJ announces additional FIFA officials indicted, (Dec 3, 2015)
Organizations Mentioned:U.S. Department of Justice
By Jody Coultas, J.D.
The U.S. Department of Justice and other federal and state agencies have obtained a 92-count indictment against current and former soccer officials associated with the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), charging 16 defendants with pervasive and long-running conspiracies in the world of organized soccer.
The indictment, announced today by Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, supersedes a previous indictment of 14 FIFA officials, includes new charges against new defendants, expands the bribery and corruption charges, and contains additional arrests and guilty pleas associated with the ongoing investigation.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that 14 high-ranking FIFA officials were charged with racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracies, among other offenses, in connection with their participation in a 24-year scheme to enrich themselves through the corruption of international soccer. The schemes related to the solicitation and receipt of bribes and kickbacks by soccer officials in connection with media and marketing rights to soccer matches and tournaments, sponsorship of the Brazilian soccer federation by a major U.S. sportswear company, the selection of the host country for the 2010 World Cup, and the 2011 FIFA presidential election.
The new allegations announced by the DOJ relate to a series of bribery schemes in connection with multiple cycles of FIFA World Cup qualifiers and international friendly matches involving six Central American member associations; a bribery scheme implicating many top CONMEBOL officials relating to the sale of broadcasting rights to the CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores over an extended period; and a scheme by an Argentinian sports marketing company to obtain various rights properties from CONCACAF by paying bribes to three Central American soccer officials to cause them to exert their influence in favor of the company. The DOJ alleges that the officials conspired to solicit and receive more than $200 million.
News: RICO