October 18 – FIFA number two Fatma Samoura hopes the criminal investigation launched by Swiss prosecutors into the sale of World Cup rights to the Qatari-owned beIN Media group will not “disrupt” Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 World Cup.
The probe targeting Paris Saint-Germain president and beIN media chief, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, and former FIFA executive Jerome Valcke has caused widespread publicity and is being examined by FIFA’s ethics watchdogs.
“I hope that the ongoing investigations will not disrupt the organisation of this World Cup,” Samoura, appointed in May 2016 on the personnel recommendation of FIFA president Gianni Infantino, told AFP.
The very fact Samoura even considers the Swiss criminal probe as a potential problem for 2022 should in itself have alarm bells ringing.
“The World Cups, as you know, are the jewels of FIFA competition,” she said. “Now that our structure has become much more credible, we cannot afford to jeopardise these competitions. The same goes for Qatar.
“The organisation of the competition was awarded to them in 2010, well before the new leadership came in, and we will ensure that the right conditions are put in place to be able to organise this competition in the best conditions.”
The Swiss attorney general’s office say the probe into Valcke and Al-Khelaifi includes allegations of bribery, fraud and criminal mismanagement. Italian police also seized a luxury villa in Sardinia allegedly used by Khelaifi as “a means of corruption” and allegedly “put at the disposal” of Valcke.
Al-Khelaifi, beIN Media and Valcke all deny any wrongdoing.
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