Heads of Latin American Soccer Arrested by US Authorities

Sixteen FIFA officials, mostly from the South and Central American confederations, were charged on Thursday by U.S. courts on accounts of bribery, money laundering and fraud.

The latest arrests were made during an executive meeting to discuss reforming FIFA, which has been under scrutiny by U.S. regulators since their announcement this spring to end endemic corruption. Critics have questioned the timing of the investigations, which have come ahead of Russia’s hosting of the 2018 World Cup and the president’s growing attempts to “democratize” the representation of the world’s most-watched and highly profitable sporting event.

The charges, similar to those in May that implicated the multi-billion-dollar organization’s then-President Sepp Blatter, allege years of bribes in relation to marketing and broadcasting rights for World Cup bids and soccer tournaments in Latin America. U.S. regulators are expected to request the extradition of some officials currently in Switzerland. Blatter resigned but has still not been arrested. His predecessor Lennart Johansson, known for his racist quotes and long history of corruption, has also not been tried.

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Alfredo Hawit, president of CONCACAF and vice president of FIFA, and Juan Angel Napout, president of CONMEBOL, were among those arrested on Thursday. Others charged include the current and former presidents of the Brazilian soccer federation that hosted the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals, Marco Polo del Nero and Ricardo Teixeira. Teixeira is the former son-in-law of longtime FIFA President Joao Havelange.

The former presidents of CONCACAF and CONMEBOL, FIFA’s confederations in the Western Hemisphere, also make the list. As do the former and current secretary-generals of CONMEBOL and the former president of the the Panama confederation. The arrests bring the total number of indictments to 27.

"Two high-raking #FIFA officials have been arrested in Zurich" ...and it's not who you would expect! #FIFAArrests pic.twitter.com/VYCMmYAAEG

— On The Left Side (@ontheleftside) diciembre 3, 2015

Multiple countries have opened investigations, but the U.S.’s FBI and IRS have been leading the corruption trials. The FBI’s informant, Chuck Blazer, was found guity of bribery during his service on the FIFA executive committee. Though the illegal transactions occured in Switzerland, the officials used U.S. bank accounts, allowing the FBI to investigate. The banks involved include Citibank, JP Morgan and the Bank of America, none of which have been investigated.

"Two generations of soccer officials abused their positions of trust for personal gain, frequently through an alliance of unscrupulous sports marketing executives who shut out competitors and kept highly lucrative contracts for themselves through the systematic payment of bribes and kickbacks," the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement.

Thursday marks the second day of the high level meeting to reform FIFA. Adidas, McDonald’s, Coca Cola and other World Cup sponsors all questioned the independence of the reforms in an open letter on Tuesday.

"No one is above the law." FBI on charges against 16 more officials involving 200 mil+ in bribes. #FIFAArrests pic.twitter.com/paA1dVXtYe

— KICKTV (@KICKTV) diciembre 3, 2015