GENEVA: A FIFA tribunal on Friday issued lifetime bans against two South American football officials who had already pleaded guilty to corruption offences in US court.

The ethics committee adjudicatory chamber barred Sergio Jadue of Chile and Luis Bedoya of Colombia, both former senior FIFA officials as well as vice presidents of the South American confederation CONMEBOL, “for life from all football-related activities”, said a FIFA statement.

FIFA’s in-house court launched a probe into both men on December 4, the day after the pair admitted in a New York court that they had committed racketeering and wire fraud.

They are among dozens of officials and sport marketing executives within world football detained as part of an unprecedented scandal that has spurred a massive reform drive within FIFA.

Both Jadue and Bedoya “asked for and received bribes from sports marketing companies in relation to the awarding of marketing rights” for major South American football tournaments, the FIFA statement said.

Published in Dawn, May 7th, 2016