By Toby Prince
FIFA has confirmed that Jack Warner has been handed a lifetime ban from football-related activities following an investigation into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
Warner, who spent 21 years at the head of CONCACAF, was one of several senior football officials indicted in an FBI investigation into corruption back in May.
The 72-year-old is facing extradition to the United States to answer criminal charges including fraud, racketeering and money laundering.
“The decision was taken on the basis of investigations carried out by the investigatory chamber of the Ethics Committee following its report on the inquiry into the 2018/2022 FIFA World Cup bidding process,” FIFA’s statement reads.
“Mr Warner was found to have committed many and various acts of misconduct continuously and repeatedly during his time as an official in different high-ranking and influential positions at FIFA and CONCACAF.”
The world football governing body’s Ethics Committee deemed the former FIFA Vice-president and Executive Committee member guilty of breaching the organisation’s Code of Ethics on multiple occasions.
“In his positions as a football official, he was a key player in schemes involving the offer, acceptance, and receipt of undisclosed and illegal payments, as well as other money-making schemes,” the FIFA statement explains.
“He was found guilty of violations of art. 13 (General rules of conduct), art. 15 (Loyalty), art. 18 (Duty of disclosure, cooperation and reporting), art. 19 (Conflicts of interest), art. 20 (Offering and accepting gifts and other benefits) and art. 41 (Obligation of the parties to collaborate) of the Fifa Code of Ethics.
“The ban is effective from 25 September 2015, the date on which the present decision was notified.”
