US authorities award over $200m to FIFA Foundation

The money, totalling around $201m, was seized from the bank accounts of former official who were involved in, and then prosecuted for, years of corruption schemes in football.

It will be used to establish a new “World Football Remission Fund” under the auspices of the FIFA Foundation, which will help finance football-related projects with positive community impact across the globe.

The Department of Justice said that FIFA, Concacaf and CONMEBOL were victims of former corrupt officials and the money “will be returned to where it belongs and used to benefit the sport”.

Kenneth A. Polite Jr., assistant attorney general in the department’s criminal division, said: “The approval of this remission of funds illegally obtained in the FIFA scandal marks another important milestone in these prosecutions and the department’s commitment to use all tools at its disposal to prosecute corruption and to deprive perpetrators of ill-gotten gains.”

FIFA president Gianni Infantino said: “I am delighted to see that money which was illegally siphoned out of football is now coming back to be used for its proper purposes, as it should have been in the first place.

“I want to sincerely thank the US Justice authorities for their efforts in this respect, for their fast and effective approach in bringing these matters to a conclusion, and also for their trust in general.

“The truth is that, thanks to their intervention back in 2015, we have been able to fundamentally change FIFA from a toxic organisation at the time, to a highly esteemed and trusted global sports governing body.

“Thankfully, we are well past that unfortunate period in history now and it’s great to see significant funding being put at the disposal of the FIFA Foundation, which can positively impact so many people across the football world, especially through youth and community programmes.”

He added: “Since 2016, FIFA and the United States Department of Justice have been in close cooperation, and I believe this decision also acknowledges the significant progress we have made in terms of good governance and transparency, all of which was discussed and presented by FIFA officials and me in meetings with the authorities.

“Today, they know that with the FIFA Foundation this money is in good hands and will serve the purpose it is intended for. On behalf of all future beneficiaries around the world, I would like to thank the US authorities for the trust placed in FIFA, and we will make sure that these funds are used properly and bring tangible benefits for people who really need it.”