Government denies World Cup bribes

SA appeared to be in denial yesterday over allegations by the US Justice Department that it bribed Fifa officials to win the bid to stage the 2010 World Cup, notes Legalbrief. Government and sporting officials were able to offer only the broadest dismissals of specific allegations the country paid the bribes as outlined by the FBI. ‘We are very clear that when it comes to the Fifa 2010 World Cup, there is nothing on our side that could implicate our government,’ Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula said, according to a report on the Moneyweb site. The speculation about SA’s involvement in bribery is ‘reckless at best,’ he said. The report notes a US indictment alleges SA twice paid bribes to ensure it won the bid. The first time, a bid committee official sent a briefcase full of bundles of $10 000 stacks to Jack Warner, then president of Central and North American soccer body Concacaf, via a Paris hotel drop to an intermediary, according to the indictment. While SA also promised $10m to Warner’s Caribbean Football Union, it was ‘unable to arrange for the payment to be made directly from government funds’ so Fifa paid. Warner diverted a ‘substantial portion of the funds’ for his personal use, the US Justice Department says. Warner, who stood down from all soccer posts in 2011, said in a statement that he was innocent of any charges.