Former President of Guatemala Soccer Federation Pleads Guilty in FIFA Investigation

DOJ

On July 29, the DOJ announced that the former president of the Guatemala soccer federation pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy charges. The individual was the president of the Guatemala soccer federation from 2009 to 2015. The former president’s guilty plea came in response to allegations that he received bribes in exchange for awarding media and marketing rights to a Florida company for the Guatemalan national soccer team’s World Cup qualifying games. The bribes, totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars, were transmitted from U.S. bank accounts. As part of the plea, the former president agreed to forfeit $350,000 and could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years for each count.

The guilty plea came as part of the U.S. government’s investigation into corruption in international soccer. 42 individuals and entities have been charged thus far in the investigation, which has been ongoing since May 2015, and the former president is the sixteenth person to plead guilty.