FIFA crisis: Paper-trail of Jerome Valcke's involvement in $10 million payoff emerge

Reports emerged last night that Jerome Valcke, FIFA General Secretary and President Sepp Blatter’s ’top-lieutenant’, was believed to have been involved in a cash transfer of USD 10 million in 2008 to the then-president of CONCACAF. The report stated that an unidentified “high-ranking FIFA official” transferred the sum to another FIFA official, Jack Warner - one of those indicted in the recent US and Swiss investigation. [caption id=“attachment_1758693” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Jerome Valcke’s involvement has taken the crisis one step closer to Blatter’s office. File Photo: Getty Images[/caption] FIFA issued a statement saying that the USD 10 million, duly approved by the South African Government, was part of the project to support the “African diaspora in Caribbean countries.” This was meant to be part of the legacy program of the 2010 World Cup which was held in the Rainbow Nation. The statement released by FIFA went on to say that the South African Football Association instructed the world governing body that the Diaspora Legacy Programme should be administered and implemented directly by the President of CONCACAF who at that time was Deputy Chairman of the Finance Committee - Julio Grondona - who died last year aged 82. Now, that in itself is in line with what has been the official line from FIFA’s spokespersons, who have been denying Jerome Valcke’s involvement in this matter. In fact, the statement on their website ends thus: “Neither the Secretary General Jérôme Valcke nor any other member of FIFA’s senior management were involved in the initiation, approval and implementation of the above project.” But Martyn Ziegler - Chief Sports Reporter, Press Association - has managed to get his hands on a letter, dated March 2008, that was written by the President of SAFA requesting FIFA to withhold USD 10 million as part of this program to support African diaspora in the Caribbean. The subject of the letter confirms FIFA’s statement about the government-approved cash allocation for SAFA. But guess who the letter is addressed to? Mr. Jerome Valcke, the General Secretary who FIFA has been trying to protect from this whole mess involving Jack Warner as well.

BOMBSHELL: Letter from South Africa FA to FIFA instructing $10m payment to Warner WAS addressed to Jerome Valcke pic.twitter.com/b0yKBPRAcA

— Martyn Ziegler (@martynziegler) June 2, 2015

Fair to say, not everything is rosy for Blatter as he starts his fifth term at the helm of FIFA.