Satellite TV company DirecTV said that "it is monitoring the U.S. Department of Justice investigation" into corruption in world football to "determine what actions might be necessary" in relation to an affiliate at the center of the graft allegations, according to Tom Bergin of REUTERS. U.S. prosecutors "have accused Torneos y Competencias S.A, in which DirecTV has a stake, of participating in schemes to secure television rights to football games through bribery." While stressing that it had a minority stake and had no management control of Torneos, DirectTV said in a statement, "We expect all businesses in which we have ownership interests to comply with established laws and regulations. We are following this matter closely to determine what, if any, actions will be appropriate." The indictment in the case against Torneos y Competencias CEO Alejandro Burzaco said that "the Argentina-headquartered company formed a joint venture called Datisa with two other companies which agreed to pay bribes" of $110M to football officials for TV rights to games in the Copa América, the main South American football tournament. DirecTV "declined to say what, if anything, it knew about the details of the TV rights deals negotiated by Torneos." DirecTV "also declined to say how large its stake in Torneos is" (REUTERS, 6/1).
