An FBI corruption probe that led
to the arrest of seven senior FIFA officials in Zurich on
Wednesday is a clear attempt to prevent the re-election of Sepp
Blatter as president of international soccer's governing body,
Russian President Vladimir Putin was quoted by Tass news agency
as saying Thursday.
Blatter has come under strong pressure to resign as FIFA
president in light of the arrests, even as he is hoping to win a
fifth mandate at elections scheduled for Friday.
Putin claimed pressure had been exerted on the Swiss
official to boycott the 2018 World Cup, which is to be held in
Russia.
Two FIFA vice-presidents are among those arrested on
Wednesday pending extradition to the United States in relation
to the FBI corruption probe.
They are among 14 indicted on graft charges in relation to
alleged involvement on bribes of around $100 million over two
decades.
Meanwhile, Swiss prosecutors announced they had launched a
separate investigation into the bidding process for the 2018 and
2022 World Cups, with the latter allocated to Qatar.
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