Sepp Blatter's aide Valcke linked to $10 million payment, FIFA clears him

Zurich FIFA on Tuesday admitted that it had processed a 10 million payment from South Africa to a disgraced football official but denied that the world bodys secretary general Jerome Valcke was involvedFIFA said that a former finance committee chief who died last year Argentine Julio Grondona authorised the payment which went to Jack Warner Warner one of 14 people facing corruption charges in the United States over 150 million in bribes was at the time Grondonas deputy as head of FIFAs finance committeeFIFA Secretary General Jerome ValckeThe South African government asked FIFA to withhold money intended for the organisers of the 2010 World Cup and send it to a development project in the Caribbean run by Warner a FIFA statement said According to US investigators the 10 million was a bribe promised to Warner and his deputy Chuck Blazer to secure the 2010 World CupSouth Africa has strongly denied any wrongdoing Corruption battle grows The FIFA statement came in response to a New York Times report that Valcke right hand man to FIFA president Sepp Blatter had approved the payment to an account controlled by Warner then head of the North and Central American and Caribbean confederation CONCACAF The New York Times citing unnamed law enforcement officials said the payments are a crucial part of the indictment against the 14 football officials and marketing executivesFIFA said it had acted as an intermediary between South Africa and a World Cup legacy project to support the African diaspora in Caribbean countries A FIFA statement said neither Valcke nor any other member of FIFAs senior management were involved in the initiation approval and implementation of the transferSwiss authorities said that they have received no US request for assistance regarding Valcke a Frenchman Valcke on Monday announced that he had called off a planned visit to Canada next week for the start of the Womens World Cup Blatter still plans to attend the final The payments totalling 10 million were authorised by the then chairman of the finance committee and executed in accordance with the organisation regulations of FIFA added the statementGrondona a controversial figure in world football over many decades was finance committee chief at the time He was a senior FIFA vice president when he died last year at the age of 82Swiss police following a US request arrested seven FIFA officials in Zurich two days before Blatter was reelected as president on Friday Blatter who has faced calls even since his reelection to stand down has expressed doubts about the raid But the corruption scandal has since spread with authorities in several countries launching investigationsBrazilian prosecutors have launched an investigation into Ricardo Teixeira former Brazilian Football Confederation CBF president for moneylaundering and fraud officials said Monday Jose Maria Marin who was CBF president until April was one of the seven people detained in ZurichTexeira led the CBF for 23 years until 2012 Federal government spokesman Marcelo del Negri confirmed to AFP that Texeira was under investigation A police probe found that between 2009 and 2012 Texeira moved 464 million reais about 150 million through his accounts an amount that drew attention as unusual the news magazine Epoca reported after gaining access to the police fileTeixeira now 67 stepped down in 2012 amid corruption allegations He is the soninlaw of former FIFA president Joao Havelange who was also involved in multiple controversies while head of the world body