FIFA judges imposed life bans on two former soccer federation presidents for financial misconduct, including one who stayed in office since being sanctioned in 2011 as part of a notorious election bribery scandal in the Caribbean. During the pandemic in 2020 FIFA said it would make up to $1.5 billion available in grants and loans.
Montserrat’s long-time soccer leader Vincent Cassell was charged with “abuse of position, systemic conflicts of interest” and misuse of FIFA and federation funds, FIFA said in a statement on Friday. The former president of the Maldives soccer federation, Bassam Adeel Jaleel, was expelled from the sport for “misusing FIFA Covid-19 Relief Plan funds for his personal benefit,” FIFA said.
His verdict was announced more than two years after he was provisionally suspended from soccer by FIFA. The money was intended for local soccer clubs and was reportedly used to buy apartments. Cassell and his federation’s long-time general secretary, Tandica Hughes, pleaded guilty in a Montserrat court in April to tax evasion charges. FIFA installed an emergency management team last February this year after they left. It is unclear what authority FIFA has to get the money.
Maldives media reported this year that Jaleel was sentenced to 23 years in prison for embezzling $1.2 million from FIFA. Cassell and Hughes continued to run the Montserrat soccer body, which is currently entitled to get at least $2 million each year from FIFA’s World Cup profits. Hughes was ordered to pay 150,000 Swiss francs ($184,000), FIFA said. Jaleel from the Maldives also was ordered by FIFA to pay 1 million Swiss francs.
Cassell also faced FIFA charges of “conduct affecting the physical and mental integrity of (federation) staff members,” and was fined 1 million Swiss francs ($1.23 million).
