If you have watching the recent FIFA corruption case involving the indictment of numerous officials on the governing board, then you are already familiar with the circus it is turning out to be. On Wednesday (June 3rd, 2015), it was reported that former FIFA executive Chuck Blazer pled guilty to conspiring with other FIFA officials in accepting bribes related to the selection of the location of the World Cup tournaments that were held in France and South Africa. This is bad news for officials currently under indictment.
Image of Stade de France, one of the stadiums used for the 1998 World Cup in France. France is one of the locations suspected of winning its bid based on bribes to FIFA officials.
It all started with a 47 count indictment that was issued at the end of May. The indictment listed numerous FIFA officials, accusing them of corruption and accepting bribes. Sepp Blatter, the organization’s current president, was not named in the indictment. This came on the heels of an election where Blatter was ultimately re-elected to his position, despite the publicity of the indictment and continuing investigation.
Sepp Blatter with United States President Barack Obama during a White House visit in 2009.
On June 2, 2015, Blatter announced his resignation, just a few days after he retained his position as president. The announcement came as a surprise to many who felt that Blatter would take a hard stance against the accusations against the organization.
The future of those indicted remains unclear. However, based on the revelation that a former executive has pled guilty and agreed to cooperate in the case, the result of the indictments is not likely going to be a positive one.
