The FIFA scandal is rearing its ugly ahead. Again.
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) on Friday opened criminal proceedings against FIFA president Sepp Blatter for possible criminal mismanagement and misappropriation of FIFA money.
The announcement is the latest wrinkle in a long-running scandal that has wrecked the reputation of FIFA, the governing body for World Cup Soccer.
Blatter's office at FIFA headquarters in Zurich was searched and data was seized, according to USA Today. Swiss authorities say that FIFA VP Michel Platini was questioned about a "disloyal payment" of two million Swiss francs he received from Blatter in February 2011. (Platini is the favorite to succeed Blatter as the organization's president.)
Under Swiss law, a payment is classified disloyal if it is against the best interest of the employer—in this case FIFA.
Friday's allegations also relate to World Cup broadcasting contracts Blatter agreed to with disgraced former FIFA VP Jack Warner in 2005. A statement from Blatter's lawyer, per USA Today, says the contract was "properly prepared and negotiated" and that "no mismanagement occurred."
The FIFA scandal dates back to at least 2011, when former FIFA executive committee member Mohamed bin Hammam is found guilty of bribery and banned from international football activity for life by FIFA's ethics committee.
Last May U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced an investigation into FIFA that uncovered decades of bribery totaling more than $150 million.
At the time, Federal racketeering charges were unveiled against 14 people, including nine current and former FIFA executives; seven were arrested near the organization's headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland.
However things shake out and however many FIDA officials ultimately get thrown in the slammer, the FIFA scandal has set back the organization for years. The governing body will have to clean house altogether and fundamentally change its culture if it has any puncher’s chance of recovering its reputation.
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