John Delaney has told Newstalk Lunchtime that the FIFA arrests were "shocking" and that change is badly required within the body.
Seven FIFA officials have been arrested in Switzerland over allegations they were involved in a racket involving bribes adding up to more than $150m (£96m).
On Sepp Blatter, he told Lunchtime: "Well that's the sad reality of it, it's one country one vote.
"The opposition for Blatter comes very much from within Europe.
"It says a lot about the culture of FIFA. It says a lot about some of the other confederations, that some of the countries tend to support Blatter irrespective of what controversy prevails around FIFA.
Mr Delaney went on to say that he raised concerns within UEFA: "I have been raising this for a long time. We have all raised at various times how unhappy we are with the governance of FIFA and also how unhappy we are with the constant bribery and corruption issues that surround FIFA."
He stated: "Change is badly, badly required. This is not a club that Sepp Blatter is in charge of, this is the biggest game in the world."
You can listen to his full interview here:
Former FIFA Vice-President Jack Warner has released a statement concerning the arrest of officials this morning.
His statement reads:
"My attention has been drawn to certain developments in world football which started several hours ago and is at the present time still ongoing. It has been reported that a number of FIFA officials have been arrested in Switzerland and that at least one raid conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigators in Miami is being executed at what I presume to be CONCACAF offices. My name is being reported by international media as being one of those persons sought in connection with the probe.
The people of Trinidad and Tobago will know that I quit FIFA and international football more than four years ago and that over the past several years I have recommitted my life to the work of improving the lot of every citizen of every creed and race in this nation. This is where I have let my bucket down. I have fought fearlessly against all forms of injustice and corruption. I have been afforded no due process and I have not even been questioned in this matter. I reiterate that I am innocent of any charges. I have walked away from the politics of world football to immerse myself in the improvement of lives in this country where I shall, God willing, die.
The actions of FIFA no longer concern me. I cannot help but note however that these cross- border coordinated actions come at a time when FIFA is assembled for elections to select a President who is universally disliked by the international community. At times such as this it is my experience that the large world powers typically take actions to affect world football. World football is an enormous international business. That is no longer my concern. My sole focus at this stage of my life is on the people of Trinidad and Tobago. I wish to advise the hundreds of thousands of persons who support the ILP that my commitment to them and to the people of Trinidad and Tobago is undaunted and can never be broken."
Nine FIFA officials and five corporate executives were indicted for racketeering, conspiracy and corruption.
The FIFA executives arrested are Jeffrey Webb, Eduardo Li, Julio Rocha, Costas Takkas, Eugenio Figueredo, Rafael Esquivel and José Maria Marin.
The US Department of Justice stated:
Nine FIFA Officials and Five Corporate Executives Indicted for Racketeering Conspiracy and Corruption http://t.co/7SvYgNmlaN
— Justice Department (@TheJusticeDept) May 27, 2015
The Defendants Include Two Current FIFA Vice Presidents and the Current and Former Presidents of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF); Seven Defendants Arrested Overseas; Guilty Pleas for Four Individual Defendants and Two Corporate Defendants Also Unsealed
A 47-count indictment was unsealed early this morning in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, charging 14 defendants with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies, among other offenses, in connection with the defendants' participation in a 24-year scheme to enrich themselves through the corruption of international soccer. The guilty pleas of four individual defendants and two corporate defendants were also unsealed today.
The defendants charged in the indictment include high-ranking officials of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the organization responsible for the regulation and promotion of soccer worldwide, as well as leading officials of other soccer governing bodies that operate under the FIFA umbrella. Jeffrey Webb and Jack Warner - the current and former presidents of CONCACAF, the continental confederation under FIFA headquartered in the United States - are among the soccer officials charged with racketeering and bribery offenses. The defendants also include U.S. and South American sports marketing executives who are alleged to have systematically paid and agreed to pay well over $150 million in bribes and kickbacks to obtain lucrative media and marketing rights to international soccer tournaments.
The charges were announced by Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, Acting U.S. Attorney Kelly T. Currie of the Eastern District of New York, Director James B. Comey of the FBI, Assistant Director in Charge Diego W. Rodriguez of the FBI's New York Field Office, Chief Richard Weber of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and Special Agent in Charge Erick Martinez of the IRS-CI's Los Angeles Field Office.
Also earlier this morning, Swiss authorities in Zurich arrested seven of the defendants charged in the indictment, Jeffrey Webb, Eduardo Li, Julio Rocha, Costas Takkas, Eugenio Figueredo, Rafael Esquivel and José Maria Marin, at the request of the United States. Also this morning, a search warrant is being executed at CONCACAF headquarters in Miami, Florida.
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland seized documents at FIFA
Here is the statement from their office:
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) has opened criminal proceedings against persons unknown on suspicion of criminal mismanagement and of money laundering in connection with the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 Football World Cups. In the course of said proceedings, electronic data and documents were seized today at FIFA's head office in Zurich.
Today, on Wednesday 27 May 2015, the OAG has seized data and documents stored in IT systems at the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) as part of a so-called "collection of evidence on cooperative basis". That means that the party in possession of the data - in this case, FIFA - delivers the requested data to law enforcement authorities, or gives assistance in securing the data, thus facilitating an efficient and swift procedure. The collection of relevant bank documents had already been ordered beforehand at various financial institutes in Switzerland. The files seized today and the collected bank documents will serve criminal proceedings both in Switzerland and abroad.
In the Swiss criminal proceedings, opened by the OAG on 10 March 2015, it is suspected that irregularities occurred in the allocation of the FIFA World Cups of 2018 and 2022. The corresponding unjust enrichment is suspected to have taken place at least partly in Switzerland. Furthermore, the head office of the damaged party, FIFA, is in Switzerland. For these reasons, investigations are being carried out on the suspicion of criminal mismanagement (Article 158 under 1, Section 3 Swiss Criminal Code / SCC). There are also suspicions of money laundering through Swiss bank accounts (Article 305bis, SCC). Subsequently to today's seizure of files, the OAG and the Swiss Federal Criminal Police will be questioning 10 persons who took part in voting on the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups as members of the Executive Committee in 2010. These persons should be questioned as persons providing information.
For reasons of criminal procedure (principle of proportionality), the procedure coordinated with the requested acts of the U.S. authorities was designed in such a way as to allow the procurement of any criminally relevant data in an effective manner, and to avoid any possible collusion. These measures were carried out simultaneously as a large number of persons involved in allocating the World Cups were currently in Zurich. These legal actions concern two criminal procedures conducted separately by the OAG and the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York. The Swiss and US law enforcement authorities are not conducting any joint investigations, but are coordinating their respective criminal proceedings.
On 18 November 2014, FIFA had filed criminal charges against persons unknown with the OAG. Therefore, the Swiss proceeding is aimed at persons unknown, with FIFA as the injured party. With this procedure, the OAG is contributing to the struggle against corrupt behaviour and money laundering.
Six officials detained in Zurich
The scene now outside the Bauer au Lac. pic.twitter.com/Bz2bM84JGN
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) May 27, 2015
Several top FIFA officials have been arrested in Switzerland over allegations they were involved in paying bribes adding up to more than $100m (£64m).
Swiss authorities detained six officials in an early-morning operation in Zurich on suspicion of receiving and paying bribes, the AP news agency reported.
The arrests were carried out in order to extradite the officials to the United States, the Swiss government said.
They have since raided FIFA's headquarters, seizing documents and say they have opened criminal proceedings in connection with the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar.
US officials suspect the alleged bribes were agreed to and prepared in the US, and payments carried out via US banks, according to the Swiss Federal Office of Justice (FOJ).
The FOJ said the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York is investigating the individuals on suspicion of accepting bribes and kick-backs between the early 1990s and now.
Switzerland's justice ministry said in a statement: "The bribery suspects - representatives of sports media and sports promotion firms - are alleged to have been involved in schemes to make payments to the soccer functionaries (FIFA delegates) and other functionaries of FIFA sub-organisations - totaling more than $100 million."
The statement said the investigation was into allegations involving tournaments in Latin America and the US.
One of those detained in Zurich was FIFA Vice-President and north and central American and Caribbean football association head Jeffrey Webb, according to Press Association Sport.
Others held include Costa Rica soccer federation president Eduardo Li, who was elected to FIFA's executive committee in March.
The arrests took place after more than a dozen plain-clothed Swiss police officers arrived unannounced at the Baur au Lac hotel.
The officials were in Switzerland ahead of an election which was expected to see FIFA President Sepp Blatter reinstated for a fifth term.
FIFA told AP that Blatter was not among the men arrested.
Swiss prosecuted later announced that they had opened criminal proceedings "against persons unknown on suspicion of criminal mismanagement and of money laundering in connection with the allocation of the 2018 and 2022 football World Cups".
They said they have seized "electronic data and documents" from FIFA's HQ in Zurich and 10 executive committee members will be questioned over those allegations.
As FIFA said it was clarifying "the situation", Blatter's opponent in the presidential election Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan said: "Today is a sad day for football. Clearly this is a developing story, the details of which are still emerging. It would not be appropriate to comment further at this time."
Allegations of corruption have dogged FIFA for many years with several British newspapers, including the Sunday Times, making a range of accusations ahead of the World Cup Finals last year.
The New York Times said a total of 14 people - a mixture of FIFA officials and non-FIFA sports marketing executives - were expected to be arrested in total.
Zurich police said the detainees will be questioned and then will be asked whether they are prepared to be extradited. Any who refuse will force the US to submit a formal extradition request within 40 days.
Statement from the Swiss Federal Office of Justice
Here's the full statement from the Swiss Federal Office of Justice:
The six soccer functionaries were arrested today in Zurich by the Zurich Cantonal Police.
The FOJ’s arrest warrants were issued further to a request by the US authorities.
The US attorney’s office for the eastern district of New York is investigating these individuals on suspicion of the acceptance of bribes and kickbacks between the early 1990s and the present day.
The bribery suspects – representatives of sports media and sports promotion firms – are alleged to have been involved in schemes to make payments to the soccer functionaries – delegates of Fifa (Federation Internationale de Football Association) and other functionaries of Fifa sub-organisations – totalling more than US$100m.
In return, it is believed that they received media, marketing, and sponsorship rights in connection with soccer tournaments in Latin America.
According to the US request, these crimes were agreed and prepared in the US, and payments were carried out via US banks.
The Zurich Cantonal Police will question the detainees today on behalf of the FOJ regarding the US request for their arrest.
A simplified procedure will apply for wanted persons who agree to their immediate extradition. The FOJ can immediately approve their extradition to the US and order its execution.
However, if a wanted person opposes their extradition, the FOJ will invite the US to submit a formal extradition request within the deadline of 40 days specified in the bilateral extradition treaty.
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