Peruvian Soccer Official Receives FIFA Lifetime Ban for Bribery

Manuel Burga, a Peruvian soccer official, has been handed a lifetime ban from FIFA for the second time despite being acquitted from a racketeering case in a U.S. federal court. According to FIFA, the ethics committee has ruled that Burga “participated in bribery schemes” alongside other South American soccer leaders. He has the right to appeal to Court of Arbitration for Sports, which invalidated the previous ban due to a “violation of due process rights”.

The questionable deals consist of “marketing deals for competitions including the Copa America and Copa Libertadores”, for which Burga would have received or been promised $6.6 million in bribes. He was president of Peru’s soccer federation during the time of the American federal investigation that was disclosed in 2015.

FIFA, or Fédération Internationale de Football Association, is a non-profit organization that serves as the international governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It remains the most popular sport in the world, bringing people together in admiration of competing teams. The organization works to protect and promote the game of soccer at all levels and help participants carry out their respective duties in a fair and just manner.

As for Manuel Burga, he was once a member of FIFA’s development committee, in charge of approving hundreds of million dollars in project funds. Burga had to stand trial in Brooklyn with two other South American soccer leaders, though was the only one acquitted in December 2017. After two years, FIFA’s ethics investigators considered there was “overwhelming evidence” of bribery, thus leading to the ongoing second FIFA ethics trial.