French Valcke in trouble. Blatter’s right hand – La Gazzetta dello Sport
Jerome Valcke with Sepp Blatter. Getty Images
On Monday evening, the New York Times would give a name to the big shot of FIFA still officially secret, that according to the report of the FBI and IRS (the US finance) would pay $ 10 million in 2008 to Jack Warner, then president of Concacaf, as a bribe to secure the vote of his federation to award the 2010 World Cup South Africa. This would be the Frenchman Jerome Valcke, the secretary general of the greatest organization in the world of football, the person closest to President Sepp Blatter. In the file of the investigation, made public Wednesday by US authorities, is not specified if the top managers (and documentation is not mentioned by name and surname) knew what they were for that money and Valche is not charged with any offense. In an email sent to the New York newspaper, the French ruling defends himself by saying that he never authorized the payment because “I would not have had the power to do so.” FIFA is justified, however, with a note in which he argues that the bank had been granted by the then chairman of the Finance Committee, Argentina’s Julio Grondona, coincidentally died last year.
I do not have 10 million – Blatter had already denied that he was the top-ranking managers named in the investigation: “I’m not sure, I have 10 million” he said. Former South African President Thabo Mbeki has said that his government has never paid bribes to ensure the World Cup. And so did the head of the South Africa 2010 organizing committee, Danny Jordaan: “What sense would have had to pay a bribe in 2008, four years after he won the Cup. That money should allow the development of football in the Caribbean.” But the authorities explain that in 2004 South Africa had no availability and Fifa had decided to advance quell’ingente sum of money, decurtandola from what would then have to pay to the organizing country. Now, in the light of this revelation, Jerome Valcke has decided not to attend next Saturday at the kickoff of the Women’s World Cup being played in Canada.
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