Brazilian police turned to int'l agency Interpol to help find the CEO of a Swiss hospitality company "implicated by an investigation into the illegal resale of VIP World Cup tickets." Rio police asked their federal counterparts "to broadcast a warrant for Ray Whelan of MATCH Services, a company contracted by tournament organizers, across Brazil and over the Interpol system." Int'l Police Cooperation Center for the World Cup Head Eduardo Navajas said, “If he tries to leave the country we can stop him and now other countries will know when he enters that we are looking for him and they will inform us" (REUTERS, 7/13). ... Former Argentine footballer Diego Maradona said that "his compatriot Lionel Messi did not deserve the Golden Ball award" at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Maradona: "I would give heaven and earth to Leo. But when marketing people want him to win something he didn't [deserve to] win, it is unfair." Messi "was only a sporadic threat in the final." Maradona, who was named the best player when Argentina won the World Cup in '86, said, "I could see that he didn't want to go up and collect it [the award]" (BBC, 7/14). ... Brazil 2014 has proved to be a social, mobile #WorldCup as more than a billion fans were able to #joinin across FIFA’s official digital platforms. Attendance in the Global Stadium exceeded one billion users by the final whistle (FIFA).
