Former FIFA exec committee member Chuck Blazer told a U.S. federal judge that he and others on the governing body's ruling panel "agreed to receive bribes" in the votes for the hosts of the '98 and '10 World Cups," according to Ronald Blum of the AP. Prosecutors unsealed a 40-page transcript yesterday of the hearing in U.S. District Court on Nov. 25, 2013, when Blazer "pleaded guilty to racketeering and other charges." Blazer, also a former CONCACAF exec, told the judge, "Beginning in or around 2004 and continuing through 2011, I and others on the FIFA executive committee agreed to accept bribes in conjunction with the selection of South Africa as the host nation for the 2010 World Cup." Blazer also said that he was "involved in bribes" around '92 in the vote for the '98 World Cup host, won by France over Morocco 12-7. He also "admitted to corruption involving the CONCACAF Gold Cup" (AP, 6/3). Law enforcement officials said that Blazer, facing up to 20 years in prison, "became a cooperating witness ... although in the redacted version of the plea hearing filed Wednesday, there were no references" to his cooperating with the government. However, officials added that part of Blazer’s cooperation deal "had included secretly recording conversations." In N.Y., Stephanie Clifford reports there are "at least two other cooperating witnesses in the FIFA case that suggest the kind of agreement" Blazer may have struck. They are Daryan and Daryll Warner, sons of former CONCACAF President Jack Warner (N.Y. TIMES, 6/4). Also in N.Y., Thompson, Vinton, Red & O'Keeffe write outgoing FIFA President Sepp Blatter "didn’t know it at the time, but FIFA’s ship began sinking a year and a half ago," at Blazer's "secret hearing." The transcript of the plea also "reconfirms Blazer’s centrality to the ongoing investigation of FIFA executives and their business partners" by N.Y. prosecutors. Blazer's "blunt admission is just the latest blow to FIFA and Blatter" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/4).
GOOD LUCK, CHUCK: In DC, Hobson & Horwitz report the pleading "confirms Blazer’s central role in the U.S. government’s case against other FIFA officials and points to one scheme vital to determining whether the investigation will expand to ensnare others." Blazer told investigators that the bribes South African officials agreed to pay in '04 "were arranged by 'high-ranking officials of FIFA.'" Building the cases against those high-ranking officials "is critical to the future of the investigation" (
WASHINGTON POST, 6/4).
CBS’ Mark Phillips said Blazer, a “man they call ‘Mr. Ten Percent,’” and his “own avarice has exposed a culture of corruption in FIFA ... going back decades.” Phillips said Blazer’s testimony "was part of a plea bargain with the IRS and the FBI” about his bribe-taking that "turned him into an informant, even sending him into meetings held during the London 2012 Olympics carrying a wiretap on a key-ring fob.” Phillips: “That bribes were paid to hold the World Cup going back at least as far as France (in ’98) shows how deeply ingrained the practice has been” (
“Evening News,” CBS, 6/3). In L.A., Nathan Fenno notes though no deal is discussed in the hearing transcript, the "implication was clear that Blazer would assist in the investigation." Sources said that Blazer’s cooperation "included using a recording device to capture conversations to aid in the federal investigation" (
L.A. TIMES, 6/4). In N.Y., Selim Algar notes Blazer's meeting "revealed a stunning level of graft" among FIFA management (
N.Y. POST, 6/4). U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch yesterday declined comment on whether Blatter is "under investigation" in the U.S. probe (
REUTERS, 6/3).
OPENING UP PANDORA'S BOX: CNN.com's Laura Smith-Spark reported Jack Warner has "promised to unleash a tide of evidence relating to the dealings" of FIFA. The revelations "came first in a paid political ad, titled 'Jack Warner: The gloves are off,' in which he said he had prepared a comprehensive series of documents on FIFA's transactions, including checks and corroborated statements." In the ad, aired on TV in his native Trinidad and Tobago, Warner said he would "no longer keep secrets for those persons who now seek actively to destroy this country's hard-won international image." He added, "Blatter knows why he fell. And if there's one other person who knows, I do" (CNN.com, 6/3). In N.Y., Thompson & Red note Warner, a "FIFA loose cannon," is "believed to hold the keys to a Pandora’s Box of corrupt dealings, many of which could implicate Blatter" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/4). Fox Sports’ Alexi Lalas said with the revelations of corruption by Blazer, “you’ve to make sure your own house is clean -- and I fear for the future." Lalas: "I really hope that more stuff doesn't come out that shows that while (the U.S. is) out there policing, back home on our own shores, there was all sorts of stuff that was going on. That would be detrimental to the cause” (“Fox Sports Live,” FS1, 6/4). ESPN FC’s Alejandro Moreno said “there is no credibility” with CONCACAF, and now that there is “confirmation” to the previously alleged corruption, “all of us now have lost any sort faith or belief in the system in CONCACAF” ("ESPN FC," ESPNews, 6/3).
