FIFA extends ban on Blatter until 2028

FIFA has banned its former president Sepp Blatter until 2028, after handing him a new suspension of six years and eight months for receiving huge bonuses.

Former FIFA secretary-general Jerome Valcke also had his existing suspension extended by the same amount.

The new bans will only come into force when the current bans on Blatter and Valcke for corruption, which last till October this year and October 2025, end.

FIFA’s Ethics Committee said it had also fined each man $1.1m.

In a summary of the Ethics Committee’s decision, it  said 85 years old Blatter, received 23 million Swiss francs in “extraordinary bonuses” linked to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and the 2014 World Cup in Brazil as well as the Confederations Cup tournament in Brazil that preceded it.

“Valcke, the 60-year-old Frenchman who was Blatter’s right-hand man during his 17-year reign at the head of football’s world governing body, received 30 million Swiss francs in bonuses over the same period,”  the committee said.

The former sports journalist was initially banned for 12 years but it was reduced to 10 years on appeal. He is now banned until 2032.

FIFA said Blatter and Valcke had violated the Code of Ethics by “offering and accepting gifts or other benefits” and through “abuse of position”.

It said in a statement, “The investigations into Messrs Blatter and Valcke covered various charges, in particular concerning bonus payments in relation to FIFA competitions that were paid to top FIFA management officials, various amendments and extensions of employment contracts, as well as reimbursement by FIFA of private legal costs in the case of Mr Valcke.”

NP/Confidence Okwuchi