Posted on 05/28/2015 12:28:09 PM PDT by Brad from Tennessee
The international investigation into bribery, fraud and corruption at FIFA involved some surprising American names: The Miami chairman of a popular nationwide soccer league, and a major U.S. sportswear firm some believe could be Nike.
For more than two decades, the Justice Department said Wednesday, five "unscrupulous" U.S. and South American sports and banking executives helped funnel more than $150 million in bribes to officials atop FIFA, the multibillion-dollar goliath governing the world's most popular sport.
The indictment also alleges bribes were paid and pocketed in connection with the sponsorship of the Brazilian national soccer team by "a major U.S. sportswear company." Although investigators will not name the company, the indictment says the sportswear firm signed a 10-year, $160 million sponsorship deal with the Brazilian team in 1996, closely matching Nikes clothes, shoes and equipment deal with the team that year.
The indictment alleges a sportswear-company official agreed three days later to allow Traffic Brazil, a sports marketing company, to charge additional "marketing fees." Traffic then invoiced the company for tens of millions of dollars more in payments over the next three years that investigators say were bribes. . .
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
And Putin is taking a page from the Clinton’s, suggesting this allegation is “sour grapes” for losing the 2018 & 2022 World Cup hosting.
Oh...and the Clintons...ya...they made money off of this scam also.
“Thats a slow rolling end times.”
Yeah, but still,,,,, I played goalie in Prep School. I enjoyed playing it. But sitting in the stands watching it? Really boring. It’s almost as if soccer were a social thing, more than a sports thing.
Everybody’s got their taste. I don’t understand how anybody watches baseball, but there it is, America’s past time.
Yeah, I remember when the FIFA scandal almost collapsed the world economy.
Nike Joins Aspen Institute and Clinton Foundation to Reshape Youth Sports (1-14-2014)
NIKE, Inc. announced a Commitment to Action at the annual Clinton Health Matters Initiative Conference to provide critical resources and partnerships in the U.S. to help reshape the way kids take part in sports and play.
The commitment is aimed at providing Americas kids with early, positive experiences in sports and aligns with Designed to Move, the framework for action that Nike spearheaded with more than 70 expert organizations aimed at reversing the physical inactivity epidemic around the world.
President Clinton opened the conference by joining basketball great Kobe Bryant on stage to discuss some of the barriers to youth participation, which include the need for access to sports for kids of all ability levels and over-specialization in sports at too early of an age. . .
http://news.nike.com/news/nike-joins-aspen-institute-and-clinton-foundation-to-reshape-youth-sports
Thanks! Leave it to FReepers to get the facts out. Great job.
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