Soccer scandal: FIFA officials arrested in $100M bribery ring

Swiss police arrested six soccer officials on corruption charges brought by the United States and detained them pending extradition to the U.S.; the raid took place Wednesday at a luxury hotel in Zurich. Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, was not among those arrested. The U.S. charges reportedly include money laundering, racketing and bribes “totaling more than $100 million” linked to commercial deals dating back to the 1990s for tournaments in the U.S. and Latin America, the Swiss Federal Office of Justice said in a statement. It was unclear whether the probe was linked to the 1994 World Cup hosted by the United States. The officials were attending a FIFA congress and presidential election in Switzerland.

It is believed that they received media, marketing, and sponsorship rights in connection with soccer tournaments in Latin America.

Swiss justice ministry

The arrests were made at the Baur au Lac Hotel in downtown Zurich, long favored as a place for senior FIFA officials to stay. It was the stage for intense lobbying for votes ahead of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosting decisions in December 2010. Among the people arrested in Zurich was Costa Rica soccer federation president Eduardo Li, according to the New York Times. He was later seen leaving the hotel in a car with law enforcement officials.

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