Dawn had "just broken in Zurich" when FIFA official Eduardo Li "was spotted being dragged out of an opulent hotel's side entrance," according to Rob Harris of the AP. Li was "in clear view on the quiet side street" as he was bundled into an unmarked police car, one of seven FIFA officials arrested as "Swiss police swooped on the Baur au Lac hotel at the behest of American authorities." Years of investigations into football corruption "burst into public view" on the morning of May 27 as the so-called "World Cup of fraud" was exposed and FIFA would be "coerced into cleaning up its act." By the end of '15, four FIFA VPs had been indicted in the U.S., "including two swept up in a second wave of arrests in December after being chosen to replace those from the Americas indicted in May." A fifth VP, UEFA President Michel Platini, was banished by FIFA from football until '23 along with FIFA President Sepp Blatter -- the man he was "expected to succeed." Perhaps what surprised football fans in '15 as much as the arrests "was the interest of U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch in such sleaze." But the "significant role the world's most popular sport plays in the U.S." was confirmed not only by Lynch but by Americans at, "of all things in this year, a FIFA event." When the U.S. won a third Women's World Cup title in July, the victory over Japan was watched by more than 25 million American TV viewers. One of the "enduring images," though, of a football year "scarred by wrongdoing" was of the game's ability to provide a "powerful platform for unity after becoming a target for Islamic extremists in last month's Paris attacks." After France's match against Germany at the Stade de France was targeted by suicide bombers, who failed to enter the stadium, "the French team traveled to England for the friendliest of friendly games." The fixture was "overshadowed by a sense of grief but also of fraternity as the Wembley Stadium arch was lit in the blue, white and red of the French flag" and the national anthem was sung by both sets of fans. Football's most pressing concern in '16 will "remain ensuring the safety of fans and players," particularly with France hosting the first 24-team European Championship in June and July (AP, 12/28).
