Soccer Rights for Sale

Two senior officials of international soccer bodies are accused of taking millions of dollars in bribes from sports-marketing companies. In return, they helped award the broadcasting and marketing rights to major tournaments. The money moved through bank accounts in several countries, including accounts in the United States. The officials say the deals happened overseas, between foreigners, so American fraud law should not reach them. They also say the law was too vague to warn them that breaking their organisation's ethics rules could be a federal crime.