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Swiss prosecutors investigating PSG Chairman over World Cup bribery

PSG Chairman, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, is being investigated by Swiss prosecutors for involvement in a possible World Cup bribery deal on sale of media rights.

Former FIFA Secretary General, Jerome Valcke, is being suspected by the Swiss prosecutors to have “accepted undue advantages” from Al-Khelaifi “in connection with the awarding of media rights for certain countries at the FIFA World Cups in 2026 and 2030”

The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) had said earlier in 2016 that it was investigating Valcke for “various acts of criminal mismanagement”.

The new proceedings involved suspected cases of bribery, fraud and forgery against Valcke and Al Khelaifi, who is the Chief Executive of the beIN Media Group.

According to the OAG,

“It is suspected that Jerome Valcke accepted undue advantages from a businessman in the sports rights sector in connection with the award of media rights for certain countries at the FIFA World Cups in 2018, 2022, 2026 and 2030, and from Nasser Al-Khelaifi in connection with the award of media rights for certain countries at the FIFA World Cups in 2026 and 2030.”

“As it announced in March 2016, the OAG is already conducting a proceeding against Jerome Valcke, in particular on suspicion of various acts of criminal mismanagement. This proceeding is still ongoing.

“The new proceeding has been opened primarily on the basis of findings obtained by the OAG in the earlier proceeding.”

According to the OAG, the current investigation which commenced in March 2017 as it relates to Al-Khelaifi is collaboratively carried out in partnership with France, Greece, Italy and Spain authorities.

It added its representatives had interviewed Valcke as a suspect in Switzerland on Thursday.

Valcke was interviewed by OAG representatives during the week. He was sacked by FIFA in 2016 following a probe by the US Department of Justice with implications in an alleged scandal which involved ticket sales and funds misuse, which also brought down his boss, the then-FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

He was banned by FIFA for 10 years for related offences, although he has appealed against that ruling.

World football governing body in a statement has said “FIFA fully supports the investigation conducted by the Swiss Office of the Attorney General‎ as well as the other involved authorities that has become public today.”

Two judges from the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office in France had conducted a search of the Paris offices of beIN Sports, at the request of the Swiss public prosecutor as confirmed by the French Justice Ministry.

The beIN group said in a statement that: “Following a request by the OAG of Switzerland, the beIN Sports offices in Boulogne-Billancourt were searched this morning.

“The employees on site co-operated with the authorities until the end of the search.

“BeIN Media Group refutes all allegations by OAG. The company will fully co-operate with the authorities and is confident as to the future developments of this investigation.”

Al-Khelaifi, 43, was appointed chairman and chief executive of PSG in 2011 shortly after the club’s buyout by a Qatari-led consortium.

He also masterminded the World record breaking transfer fee for former Barcelona forward, Neymar.

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