FIFA announced on the 22nd that it had initiated criminal proceedings with the prosecution of the canton of Zurich, Switzerland, accusing former FIFA President Blatter of alleged violations in the World Football Museum project.
FIFA filed a lawsuit amounting to 1 billion Swiss francs, or about $1.2B, involving the construction cost of the whole project, the renovation of a building that is not part of FIFA, and the long-term lease contract signed at a price above the market price.
FIFA said there was evidence that Blatter participated in the signing of agreements related to the construction of museums in violation of regulations.
The World Football Museum is located in Zurich and was opened to the public in 2016.
FIFA Deputy Secretary-General Alasdale Bell said that FIFA found a variety of suspicious situations and management errors in its ex post facto audit of the World Football Museum project, some of which may involve crimes and must be reported to the prosecution.
FIFA also intends to submit all documents related to this incident to the independent ethics committee so that the ethics committee can initiate any investigation it deems appropriate in appropriate circumstances.
Blatter’s lawyers later said that FIFA’s allegations were groundless, and they firmly denied it.
