BANNED JEROME VALCKE FORMER FIFA SEC GEN LOSES APPEAL

LAUSANNE, Switzerland – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed the appeal filed by Jérôme Valcke, former Secretary General of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), against the decision issued by the FIFA Appeal Committee in which he was banned from taking part in any football-related activity for a period of ten years and fined CHF 100,000.

On 23 February 2017, Jérôme Valcke filed an appeal at the CAS seeking to have the challenged decision set aside in order for the sanction imposed on him to be lifted definitively.

The CAS arbitration was conducted by Prof. Massimo Coccia (Italy), President, the Hon Michael J. Beloff QC (UK) and Prof. Ulrich Haas (Germany) who conducted a hearing in the presence of the parties on 17 October 2017 at the CAS headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

CAS has dismissed the appeal and confirmed the FIFA AC decision dated 24 June 2016, specifically, the violations of the FIFA Code of Ethics with respect to Mr Valcke’s involvement in the resale of FIFA World Cup tickets, in relation to his travel expenses, his involvement in a transaction between FIFA and a software development company, an offer of an improper benefit to the regional football union and his failure to cooperate with the FIFA investigation.

The Panel concluded that the offences found to have been committed by Jérôme Valcke were cumulatively of a serious degree of gravity and that, therefore, the sanctions of a ten-year ban and fine of CHF 100,000 were wholly proportionate. Consequently, the Panel dismissed the appeal and confirmed the FIFA AC decision.