FIFA's ethics judges announced on Thursday that "they had opened formal proceedings" against suspended Secretary General Jérôme Valcke over alleged corruption involving World Cup ticket sales, one of many scandals now surrounding football's governing body, according to Koltrowitz & Franklin of REUTERS.
The announcement "came after an ethics investigation into the case recommended a nine-year ban for Valcke," former right-hand man to FIFA President Sepp Blatter, who himself has been banned for eight years.
Valcke, who is suspended pending the final outcome and has denied wrongdoing, "has been invited to submit evidence to the panel." The allegations against Valcke "stem from former Israeli football player Benny Alon telling a news conference in September in Zurich that he had agreed in 2013 to pay cash to Valcke to secure plum tickets for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil" (REUTERS, 1/7).
CONMEBOL HQ RAIDED: The AP reported authorities in Paraguay are raiding the HQ of CONMEBOL in the capital of Asunción. The raid is "connected to the sprawling FIFA probe being led by U.S. and Swiss authorities." A Public Ministry statement said that investigators were "combing the headquarters on Thursday in search of documents or information on computer hard drives related to the FIFA probe" (AP, 1/7).
