the fifa corruption report

[Nigels Tackle]

blatter and his mob are beyond bent aren't they?
quite incredible that the report's lead investigator, michael garcia, says the reported findings contain 'erroneous representations of the facts' and he will appeal against it

[Wonderwall]

and Russia could not provide any information with regards to their bids as they have stated that all the computers used in the bidding process were mysteriously wiped the day after the bid was successful?

What a load of corrupt bastards..... how they can get away with this shit is unreal. Its like they have carte blanche to do what they want!!

[Goaters 103]

Terrific summation in a tweet by Dan Walker on FIFA

"If you ever committed a crime it would great to investigate yourself, appoint a judge & not have to disclose any evidence"

The English FA should continue to highlight them for the corrupt bastards they are, and aside from fulfilling international fixtures, give them fucl all in terms of money, sponsorship, comment, assistance, exposure, tickets, anything.

TBH if all the European nations simply pulled out of the 2022 WC, which is the biggest farce of a tournament award in the history of man. Footballs supposed flagship tournament, awarded to a nation with no stadiums whatsoever, no domestic league at all, temperatures of 120 plus degrees at the time of the games themselves? Ha ha haaaaa. Right, good one.

[Ted Hughes]

So the only people guilty of any wrongdoing during the bid process, are the people who were asking for greater transparency during the bid process ?

Who was in charge of this review ? Joseph Goebbels ?

[Wonderwall]

Terrific summation in a tweet by Dan Walker on FIFA

"If you ever committed a crime it would great to investigate yourself, appoint a judge & not have to disclose any evidence"

The English FA should continue to highlight them for the corrupt bastards they are, and aside from fulfilling international fixtures, give them fucl all in terms of money, sponsorship, comment, assistance, exposure, tickets, anything.

TBH if all the European nations simply pulled out of the 2022 WC, which is the biggest farce of a tournament award in the history of man. Footballs supposed flagship tournament, awarded to a nation with no stadiums whatsoever, no domestic league at all, temperatures of 120 plus degrees at the time of the games themselves? Ha ha haaaaa. Right, good one.

I agree wit the sentiment here, I too would LOVE it if England came out and said it as it was and said to the whole of football, that if that is the way they want football to be ran, then we want no part of it. Its either Blatter steps down and a full review of the process for the 2018/22 world cups is revised and revoted on. Or we walk away and say a big fuck you to FIFA. They are no longer welcome here for internationals....of course there would be ramifications for the domestic game but it would ruffle feathers and there would be an almighty fallout from it. I cant see any good coming from any other decision TBH. We need to point out the big fucking elephant in the room.

[Ted Hughes]

Terrific summation in a tweet by Dan Walker on FIFA

"If you ever committed a crime it would great to investigate yourself, appoint a judge & not have to disclose any evidence"

The English FA should continue to highlight them for the corrupt bastards they are, and aside from fulfilling international fixtures, give them fucl all in terms of money, sponsorship, comment, assistance, exposure, tickets, anything.

TBH if all the European nations simply pulled out of the 2022 WC, which is the biggest farce of a tournament award in the history of man. Footballs supposed flagship tournament, awarded to a nation with no stadiums whatsoever, no domestic league at all, temperatures of 120 plus degrees at the time of the games themselves? Ha ha haaaaa. Right, good one.

I agree wit the sentiment here, I too would LOVE it if England came out and said it as it was and said to the whole of football, that if that is the way they want football to be ran, then we want no part of it. Its either Blatter steps down and a full review of the process for the 2018/22 world cups is revised and revoted on. Or we walk away and say a big fuck you to FIFA. They are no longer welcome here for internationals....of course there would be ramifications for the domestic game but it would ruffle feathers and there would be an almighty fallout from it. I cant see any good coming from any other decision TBH. We need to point out the big fucking elephant in the room.

Well we don't yet know what is in the actual full report. It could be that the bloke who did it is also a stooge & the whole thing is a double bluff. FIFA are 'forced' to release it & then do so, & we find nothing else in it, apart from a bit more embarrassment for the English FA. I would put nothing past these people.

If however the report is badly damaging for FIFA, & this is a desperate attempt to cover it up, I think they will struggle to get away with it. I imagine this will come out . If it doesn't, THEN would be the time for perhaps more than one association to make a stand.

[JamieMCFC]

Terrific summation in a tweet by Dan Walker on FIFA

"If you ever committed a crime it would great to investigate yourself, appoint a judge & not have to disclose any evidence"

The English FA should continue to highlight them for the corrupt bastards they are, and aside from fulfilling international fixtures, give them fucl all in terms of money, sponsorship, comment, assistance, exposure, tickets, anything.

TBH if all the European nations simply pulled out of the 2022 WC, which is the biggest farce of a tournament award in the history of man. Footballs supposed flagship tournament, awarded to a nation with no stadiums whatsoever, no domestic league at all, temperatures of 120 plus degrees at the time of the games themselves? Ha ha haaaaa. Right, good one.

I agree wit the sentiment here, I too would LOVE it if England came out and said it as it was and said to the whole of football, that if that is the way they want football to be ran, then we want no part of it. Its either Blatter steps down and a full review of the process for the 2018/22 world cups is revised and revoted on. Or we walk away and say a big fuck you to FIFA. They are no longer welcome here for internationals....of course there would be ramifications for the domestic game but it would ruffle feathers and there would be an almighty fallout from it. I cant see any good coming from any other decision TBH. We need to point out the big fucking elephant in the room.

Well we don't yet know what is in the actual full report. It could be that the bloke who did it is also a stooge & the whole thing is a double bluff. FIFA are 'forced' to release it & then do so, & we find nothing else in it, apart from a bit more embarrassment for the English FA. I would put nothing past these people.

If however the report is badly damaging for FIFA, & this is a desperate attempt to cover it up, I think they will struggle to get away with it. I imagine this will come out . If it doesn't, THEN would be the time for perhaps more than one association to make a stand.

Garcia was barred last year from entering Russia. He was on their Guantanamo list which was a response to the U.S. Magnitsky list.

[nottsblue]

Will there even still be International football in 2022 in its present guise. I for one would not miss it. I am not convinced that many countries would miss it either. Surely none of the clubs in the top leagues of Europe would be disappointed if their players didn't disappear for a couple of weeks three or four times a year?

If one country pulled out maybe more would follow suit. It happened with the Premier league and Champions league. No reason why it couldn't happen with national teams. A tournament played every couple of years with 12/16 teams on an invitation basis would eliminate a lot of crappy fixtures and meaningless friendlies.

[JamieMCFC]

FBI moves ahead with FIFA corruption probe

Washington (CNN) -- U.S. investigators are stepping up the pace of a corruption investigation into senior leaders of FIFA, even as the world soccer body is giving itself a clean bill of health, according to U.S. law enforcement officials.

The FIFA ethics committee announced Thursday that it was closing its investigation into alleged corruption in the 2018 and 2022 bidding process that awarded the World Cup to Russia and Qatar, respectively.

FIFA said its investigation found no corruption and has no reason to reopen the bidding process.

But the FBI, which is leading the U.S. probe, isn't ready to do the same. Investigators are moving ahead with their probe, which could result in charges against senior FIFA officials, the U.S. law enforcement officials said.

FBI agents based in New York are moving ahead with their 3-year-old investigation, which will likely benefit from the findings of a former U.S. prosecutor, Michael Garcia, who was hired by FIFA to do an internal probe. The FBI plans to seek access to Garcia's report, which FIFA hasn't yet released.

The FBI declined to offer an official comment.

Garcia on Thursday distanced himself from the FIFA ethics announcement, saying: "Today's decision by the Chairman of the Adjudicatory Chamber contains numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of the facts and conclusions detailed in the Investigatory Chamber's report. I intend to appeal this decision to the FIFA Appeal Committee."

A U.S. law enforcement official said the probe is looking at a variety of alleged corruption issues, including the 2018 and 2022 bidding process.

The FBI investigation includes the cooperation of a former top FIFA official who has provided documents and recordings of meetings with colleagues, law enforcement officials said.

The New York Daily news, which reported on the cooperation of former FIFA official Chuck Blazer, quoted Blazer as saying: "I just can't talk about that."

FIFA has long been dogged by allegations of corruption. In 2011, the FIFA banned for life Mohamed bin Hammam, a Qatari member of its top governing body, for ethics violations.

The organization says it is planning unspecific improvements in the way it conducts World Cup bids.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/13/politics/ ... ?hpt=hp_t2

[zuricity]

FBI moves ahead with FIFA corruption probe

Washington (CNN) -- U.S. investigators are stepping up the pace of a corruption investigation into senior leaders of FIFA, even as the world soccer body is giving itself a clean bill of health, according to U.S. law enforcement officials.

The FIFA ethics committee announced Thursday that it was closing its investigation into alleged corruption in the 2018 and 2022 bidding process that awarded the World Cup to Russia and Qatar, respectively.

FIFA said its investigation found no corruption and has no reason to reopen the bidding process.

But the FBI, which is leading the U.S. probe, isn't ready to do the same. Investigators are moving ahead with their probe, which could result in charges against senior FIFA officials, the U.S. law enforcement officials said.

FBI agents based in New York are moving ahead with their 3-year-old investigation, which will likely benefit from the findings of a former U.S. prosecutor, Michael Garcia, who was hired by FIFA to do an internal probe. The FBI plans to seek access to Garcia's report, which FIFA hasn't yet released.

The FBI declined to offer an official comment.

Garcia on Thursday distanced himself from the FIFA ethics announcement, saying: "Today's decision by the Chairman of the Adjudicatory Chamber contains numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of the facts and conclusions detailed in the Investigatory Chamber's report. I intend to appeal this decision to the FIFA Appeal Committee."

A U.S. law enforcement official said the probe is looking at a variety of alleged corruption issues, including the 2018 and 2022 bidding process.

The FBI investigation includes the cooperation of a former top FIFA official who has provided documents and recordings of meetings with colleagues, law enforcement officials said.

The New York Daily news, which reported on the cooperation of former FIFA official Chuck Blazer, quoted Blazer as saying: "I just can't talk about that."

FIFA has long been dogged by allegations of corruption. In 2011, the FIFA banned for life Mohamed bin Hammam, a Qatari member of its top governing body, for ethics violations.

The organization says it is planning unspecific improvements in the way it conducts World Cup bids.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/13/politics/ ... ?hpt=hp_t2

Well the CIA are still copying SWIFT payments.So they should be able to track the payments.

[blue-nova]

Given that Chuck Blazer the ex-FIFA exec has been working for the FBI for a while and bugging meetings, you'd hope they have enough evidence to bring the whole corrupt lot down once and for all.

It really is bizarre that they've got away with being so openly corrupt for so long. Why on earth should a group of pensioners in Switzerland have such control over football?

[dazby]

This is so laughable. The guys that won are cleared but England and Oz get caned for not being bribey enough.

Australia's World Cup bid team violated bidding and ethics rules.

The official FIFA report into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups has cleared the respective successful bidders, Russia and Qatar, of any wrongdoing, but has slammed Australia's bid for attempting to win favour with certain members of the FIFA executive committee.

German judge Hans-Joachim Eckert, chairman of the adjudicatory chamber of FIFA's independent ethics committee, authorised the publishing of a 42-page summary of the report, undertaken by former US attorney Michael Garcia, on Thursday night (Australian time). FIFA claims the full report can never be made public due to legal reasons.
But the cut-down version declared Russia and Qatar fully co-operated in the investigation that began in 2012, with Eckert reckoning any problems with the bids to be "of a very limited scope" and "far from reaching any threshold that would require returning to the bidding process, let alone reopening it."



Australia received considerable admonishment, with the bid's "efforts to gain the support of a FIFA executive committee member", investments into development programs in nations where executive committee members lived and contact with the notorious "bid consultants" – Peter Hargitay and Fedor Radmann – all heavily criticised.

"Certain devices employed by the bid team and its consultants were seemingly aimed at hiding ties with individuals close to the executive committee member concerned while taking advantage of their influence over the member to further the bid strategy," the report read. "According to the report, there have been several different occurrences involving the Australia 2022 bid that displayed potentially problematic connections between financial and other support for 'football development' and the bidding process."

Football Federation Australia's bid was slammed for funnelling money into CONCACAF development projects that appeared to be linked to disgraced former confederation president Jack Warner, now banned from football for life. England's 2018 bid was also heavily criticised in the report for attempting to curry favour with Warner, said to control a bloc of influential votes on the executive committee.

The report also fingered Australia for entertaining projects in Oceania in exchange for the vote of then-executive committee member Reynald Teymarii, now also serving a life ban from the game after being outed for corruption by the Sunday Times.

Also mentioned is a plot to redirect Australian government aid money towards nations who could help the bid.

"There are indications that the Australian 2022 bid team attempted to direct funds the Australian government had set aside for existing development projects in Africa towards initiatives in countries with ties to FIFA executive committee members with the intention to advance its bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup," the report said.

However, while aspects of Australia's application were described as "potentially problematic", the bid – which garnered just one supporter at the final vote in December 2010 – was cleared of any overall misconduct.

The report acknowledged two meetings with a "whistleblower" who was formerly involved with the Australian bid but said the evidence forthcoming from them "did not support its specific recollections and allegations".

Garcia's report said the whistleblower's evidence provided was "not relied on" in any form: "The relevant individual further undermined its own reliability by speaking with the press about its communications with the investigatory chamber, despite having agreed to refrain from doing so to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation."

While some of Qatar 2022's activities were described as "potentially problematic", the bid was cleared, as was the Russia 2018 bid.

Only the joint Spain-Portugal bid may be subject to further disciplinary action after failing to adequately assist Garcia's investigative team and "being particularly un-cooperative in responding to the investigatory chamber's requests".

FIFA issued a response accompanying the document which suggested they believed the matter was now closed once and for all.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/sport/s ... 1mczr.html


"FIFA welcomes the fact that a degree of closure has been reached. As such, FIFA looks forward to continuing the preparations for Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022, which are already well underway," the statement read.

"FIFA acknowledges the recommendations mentioned in the statement with regard to improving the bidding process for future FIFA World Cups, but also notes the comments of the chairman of the adjudicatory chamber regarding the bidding process for the 2018/2022 World Cups as 'well-thought, robust and professional'."

Comment was still being sought from the FFA at the time of publication.

[Goaters 103]

Yep, we welcome Australia to the glorious world of FIFA.

Co-operate and provide all the details of your acitivities and bid = you get criticised and slated.

Lie, cheat, bribe, engage in more fiddles than the London Philharmonic - then claim the dog ate your homework and provide zilch = get a free pass and continue on. That's FIFA logic for you.

[Bianchi on Ice]

I slag the FA off constantly
If I turned my attention to FIFA I think Id combust

This news should take ones breath away, but it tallies with this organisations behaviour in the last 40 odd years

What a repulsive bunch they are

[Mikhail Chigorin]

Given that Chuck Blazer the ex-FIFA exec has been working for the FBI for a while and bugging meetings, you'd hope they have enough evidence to bring the whole corrupt lot down once and for all.

It really is bizarre that they've got away with being so openly corrupt for so long. Why on earth should a group of pensioners in Switzerland have such control over football?

I'd rather the FBI handed over investigation proceedings to Mossad.

Mossad could then be judge, jury and executioners all in one.

[john68]

Personally, My view is that football administration is "ROTTEN TO THE CORE" at almost every senior level. Be that FiFA, UeFA or even our own FA and Premier League. Not only is that side of football rotten to the core, but I have absolutely no faith in POGMOL to deliver fair referees or a fair refereeing selection system. Added to that, the global power of the betting syndicates, whether from much publicised Asian groups or anywhere else has a huge controlling power over results.

The game now attracts £100sBns each year globally and wherever there is that amount of money, there is shite...In this case big shite. We fans are being led up the garden path and royally fleeced to feed their greed.

Amen

[mr_nool]

Personally, My view is that football administration is "ROTTEN TO THE CORE" at almost every senior level. Be that FiFA, UeFA or even our own FA and Premier League. Not only is that side of football rotten to the core, but I have absolutely no faith in POGMOL to deliver fair referees or a fair refereeing selection system. Added to that, the global power of the betting syndicates, whether from much publicised Asian groups or anywhere else has a huge controlling power over results.

The game now attracts £100sBns each year globally and wherever there is that amount of money, there is shite...In this case big shite. We fans are being led up the garden path and royally fleeced to feed their greed.

Amen

I think pretty much all international (and to some extent national) sporting federations are corrupt. I know that the international volleyball federation has been a real maelstrom of greed in the last decade and a half, and the international wrestling federation is beyond a joke, just to mention two.
They're basically clubs for old chums to smoke pipe, pat one another's backs and award your pals nice contracts.

But the more money involved, the bigger the greed, and the shadier the culprits. The old boys are still - to a degree - running FIFA, but I'm sure that they're now in bed with thugs, dictators, and bank executives.

[Wonderwall]

Personally, My view is that football administration is "ROTTEN TO THE CORE" at almost every senior level. Be that FiFA, UeFA or even our own FA and Premier League. Not only is that side of football rotten to the core, but I have absolutely no faith in POGMOL to deliver fair referees or a fair refereeing selection system. Added to that, the global power of the betting syndicates, whether from much publicised Asian groups or anywhere else has a huge controlling power over results.

The game now attracts £100sBns each year globally and wherever there is that amount of money, there is shite...In this case big shite. We fans are being led up the garden path and royally fleeced to feed their greed.

Amen

I think pretty much all international (and to some extent national) sporting federations are corrupt. I know that the international volleyball federation has been a real maelstrom of greed in the last decade and a half, and the international wrestling federation is beyond a joke, just to mention two.
They're basically clubs for old chums to smoke pipe, pat one another's backs and award your pals nice contracts.

But the more money involved, the bigger the greed, and the shadier the culprits. The old boys are still - to a degree - running FIFA, but I'm sure that they're now in bed with thugs, dictators, and bank executives.

At least we can reply on Cycling, swimming, athletics etc to keep our faith in whats right and whats wro........hmmm

[Beefymcfc]

Personally, My view is that football administration is "ROTTEN TO THE CORE" at almost every senior level. Be that FiFA, UeFA or even our own FA and Premier League. Amen

No more needed and I'm sure all those in LA LA land will still contest that the fairies live in the corner of their gardens.

All is right with the world, FIFA prove that corruption and agenda is all part of the footballing world. Does anybody really think that this shit doesn't roll down hill.

Where there's money or power, there's greed and corruption.

[Beefymcfc]

Sorry, quite amazing though that they actually think they can get away with this report and put it back on to countries who complained about it?

Strangely, they know they will get away with it because the headlines in some country that you have never heard of being related to football will have a vote, and those countries will lap up the headlines, not the story.

FIFA have gradually snatched the power from the real footballing countries and passed it to their lapdogs with the promise of 100 grand facilities and a sweetner to ensure compatibility

Luckily, Blatter has ensured his life until it ends, but from now on, I won't be complicit. The WC, and everything associated with it, is out.