World Cup Probe: Ex-Fifa President Blatter Summoned For Alleged Corruption

Ex-Fifa President Sepp Blatter has been summoned by prosecutors in Switzerland to explain how Germany was awarded the 2006 World Cup hosting rights.

The prosecutors are investigating a suspected corruption in the bidding process.

The disgraced former Fifa boss said he had been called by a public prosecutor and it wasn’t the first time he received such summons as regards the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

Concise News gathered that Swiss authorities are targeting Franz Beckenbauer, former captain and coach of the German World Cup winning side in 1990, who was president of the Germany 2006 bid, with a suspected 6.7 million euros ($7.5M) payment at the heart of the investigation.

“Via my lawyer, I got a call up on February 8 to a meeting with the Berne public prosecutor as a person of interest in the attributing of the 2006 World Cup to Germany,” Blatter said.

Currently serving a six-year ban from football-related activity, Blatter will meet the Berne prosecutor, who has been working on the case for two years, on March 28.

“It’s not the first time I’ve been called up in relation to this matter,” said Blatter, who will have turned 83 by the time of the meeting.

“The general secretary (of Fifa) at the time was Urs Linsi, and he maintains I gave him specific guidelines, which I contest.”