ZURICH: FIFA’s ethics committee has banned Harold Mayne-Nicholls, who led the teams which inspected the bids to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, for seven years, it said in a statement on Monday.

FIFA, world soccer’s governing body, said Mayne-Nicholls, formerly head of the Chilean Football Federation, would not be able to take part in “any kind of football-related activity at national and international level” during that period.

FIFA, which is under investigation by U.S. and Swiss authorities for alleged corruption, including in connection with the awarding of World Cup hosting rights, did not give any details of why Mayne-Nicholls had been suspended.

Russia was awarded the right to host the 2018 World Cup and Qatar the 2022 tournament in the same vote in December 2010.—Reuters

Published in Dawn, July 7th, 2015

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