Blatter denies he received ‘sexual gifts’ on 2013 trip to Haiti

May 23 – Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter has denied allegations that he received ‘sexual gifts’ from former Haiti football president Yves Jean Bart.

In a statement, Blatter rejects the claims “with the greatest vehemence”, saying: “These allegations and accusations are wrong. I assume that it is a controlled action of my opponents. The fact is: I was in Haiti in 2013 and – as always on official visits – was received by President Michel Martelly. As my visit was for the national football federation, the President of the Haitian Federation, Yves Jean-Bart, was also there.

“This reporting is baseless defamation. Those media that spread these allegations must reckon with legal consequences.”

The statement also quotes Blatter’s lawyer, Lorenz Erni, who said: “These allegations are blatantly insulting – and Mr. Blatter is determined to take vigorous legal action against the spread of these untruths.”

The story, published by Joismar, comes at a difficult time for Blatter who is in federal court in Switzerland accused of fraud in a trial that begins June 8 before a panel of three judges. The trial is expected to last 11 days.

Along with former UEFA president Michel Platini, Blatter is accused of a “disloyal payment” CHF2 million made by FIFA, on Blatter’s authority, to Platini. Federal prosecutors said last year when the two men were indicted: “The evidence gathered by the (attorney general’s office) has corroborated that this payment to Platini was made without a legal basis.”

The allegations of Blatter receiving ‘sexual gifts’ in Haiti come following the horrific unmasking of a two decades of sexual exploitation of young female, and male, footballers, by Jean-Bart and a cabal of federation staff. Jean-Bart was banned for life by FIFA in November 2020 for sexual abuse of 14 players, many of them minors, other staff from the federation’s residential training centre have similarly been banned.

The culture was that official visitors to the Haitian FA (FHF) were reportedly sent boys and girls from the FHF to their hotel rooms. The allegation against Blatter was that a member of the FHF’s staff was sent to his room at the Oasis Hotel by Yves-Bart who later boasted that “President Blatter loves Haitian women! He loves Haitian women! I got one for him”.

Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1711641988labto1711641988ofdlr1711641988owedi1711641988sni@n1711641988osloh1711641988cin.l1711641988uap1711641988