Lausanne, Switzerland ( Associated Press) – A South American football official acquitted of a racketeering conspiracy charge in the United States has been lifted a life ban by FIFA and sent back for a fresh investigation.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport said on Thursday that its panel of judges has partially upheld Manuel Berga’s appeal against FIFA “on the grounds of breach of due process rights”.
The court said that Berga’s ban from soccer, imposed in 2019, was lifted and the matter was referred back to the FIFA Investigative Chamber of the FIFA Ethics Committee, which would have to start the process again.
Berga was president of the Peruvian football federation when he was implicated in 2015 by US federal officials on charges of taking bribes by an extensive investigation.
He went on trial in Brooklyn with two other South American football leaders and only one was acquitted in December 2017. Leaving the court, he said: “My history in football is over.”
Two years later, after FIFA investigators argued there was “overwhelming evidence”, Burga was promised $6.6 million in bribes linked to marketing deals for competitions including the Copa America and Copa Libertadores.
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