U.S. House Democrats opened an investigation into FIFA, alleging potential corruption, fraudulent sales tactics, illegal price gouging and a possible quid pro quo involving the organisation and the Trump administration.
In a letter to FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Jamie Raskin, ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, accused FIFA and U.S. President Donald Trump of orchestrating a “quid pro quo” that he said was harming American consumers.
“FIFA has taken its newfound favoured status in the Trump Administration as a sign that it may rip off its consumers, most notably, by employing illegal price gouging and fraudulent sales tactics for the World Cup.”
Raskin has also mentioned the unfair and unlawful ticketing practices for the World Cup, including price surges, widespread use of dynamic pricing and the policies allowing ticket holders to be reassigned to lower-quality seats
“The original North American bid promised a maximum finals ticket price of $1,550 - FIFA surged finals tickets to nearly $33,000 per seat, more than 20 times the promised price.”
Raskin’s letter also referenced FIFA’s history of corruption. In 2015, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) charged more than two dozen high level FIFA officials and sports-marketing executives with wire fraud and money laundering.
Defendants from more than 20 countries were accused of exchanging more than $200 million in bribes and kickbacks over 24 years in return for lucrative media rights to international football matches.
In addition to the media rights scandal, FIFA officials accepted bribes to influence the selection process for the 1998, 2010, 2018, and 2022 World Cups and several were caught selling votes for the FIFA presidency itself.
Similarly, it was discovered that Full Play Group kept detailed ledgers to track millions of dollars in bribes given to soccer officials, labelling the presidents of national teams and FIFA confederations they paid off with pseudonyms like “Benz,” “Fiat,” and “Toyota” using secret Swiss bank accounts and Panamanian shell companies to facilitate these payments.
An appeals court later unanimously confirmed the convictions. However, a few months later, the Trump administration unexpectedly abandoned the case, declining to submit an opposition brief in a tap-in appeal to the Supreme Court.
Raskin argues that all the developments including FIFA’s campaign to curry favour with Donald Trump since his re-election, along with the FIFA Peace Price awarded to President Trump and leasing an office space in Trump Tower, which retails for $600,000 a year are FIFA’s efforts to cultivate favour with the Trump administration.
Committee on the Judiciary is demanding documents and communications from FIFA related to any gifts, payments, or benefits provided to Trump and his associates, as well as records concerning FIFA’s ticketing practices and contacts with U.S. officials.
He is further demanding the visitor logs for FIFA’s gratuitous, largely vacant office space in Trump Tower. The Committee is also requesting Infantino’s appearance for a transcribed interview.
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