'El Presidente': A look back at the 2015 FIFA scandal that rocked the world of soccer
'El Presidente' is all set to debut on Amazon Prime on June 5. The Spanish comedy-drama is based on the 2015 FIFA corruption scandal. Created by Oscar-winning screenwriter Armando Bo, 'El Presidente' follows the story of Chilean soccer Prez, Sergio Jadue (Andres Parra) who turns into an FBI informant. It can be best described as a tragic comedy of sorts. It also stars Karla Souza and Paulina Gaitán in key roles. Ahead of the release, here's a brief look at the actual events that unfolded.
2015 was a dark year for football. May 27, 2015, is etched in history's pages as a day that FIFA would never forget and after that eventful day, things would never be the same again. The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) revealed a 47-count, 164-page criminal indictment that saw seven FIFA men in power being charged for receiving a mammoth $150 million in bribes for more than two decades.
The seven executives were arrested at the Hotel Baur au Lac in Zürich by Swiss Police and jailed. In addition to this, seven more officials and marketing people were added for offenses that went back as far as 1991. According to the DOJ, the accused had taken bribes from marketing groups. They were received in exchange for television contracts. As per Britannica, Former FIFA CONCACAF President, Jack Warner, turned himself in, in Trinidad while another marketing executive surrendered in Italy.
The biggest names to have been named in the scandal were Eugenio Figueredo and Jeffrey Webb, former president of CONCACAF, Cayman Islands Football Association (CIFA), and FIFA vice president. December 2015 saw the second indictment and listed 16 officials. The Swiss Law states FIFA was a non-profit organization.
A Wired article captures a statement from Attorney General Loretta Lynch that says, "It spans at least two generations of soccer officials who, as alleged, have abused their positions of trust to acquire millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks." Britannica's also reported that FIFA's balance sheet at the time of the arrests listed assets of $2,932,000,000, liabilities at $1,409,000,000 and reserves amounting to $1,523,000,000 and roughly 43% of their income came from selling broadcasting rights (TV) while marketing chipped in with 29%.
Following the accusations, the World Cup Tournaments in Russia (2018) and Qatar (2022) came into focus as well. Sepp Blatter, not in the list of the 14 people named was crowned the FIFA President, but he resigned three days later and stated FIFA was in dire need of an upgrade, and a major one at that. However, he also added he would be in the office until a new president would be sworn in. Blatter never took responsibility for the scandal that happened during his time. Instead, he took the blame game route.
The investigation and developments spilled well over to 2016 where FIFA's secretary-general, Jerome Valcke was asked to put down his papers. Blatter was given a 90-day suspension in October from the ethics committee along with Valcke and Michael Platini (UEFA President). Platini was one of the prime contenders for FIFA Prez. Blatter and Platini were in for the worse as they were suspended for eight years with regard to a $2 million "disloyal payment" made to Platini.
Platini eventually resigned and Valcke was banned from any football activity for 12 years. As far as Sergio Jadue is concerned, he pleaded guilty to charges of racketeering and wire fraud conspiracy. Jadue was banned for life by the FIFA Ethics Committee in May 2016.
'El Presidente' premieres January 5 on Amazon Prime.