In a turn of events reminiscent of a courtroom thriller, a Brooklyn federal judge dealt a body blow to the U.S. legal system’s pursuit of corruption within the soccer world.
U.S. District Judge Pamela K. Chen, in a stunning move on Friday, overruled the convictions of Hernan Lopez, the former bigwig of 21st Century Fox’s International Channels, and the Argentine sports marketing behemoth, Full Play Group SA. Both were earlier found guilty of greasing the palms of South American soccer chiefs to pocket juicy broadcasting rights.
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Steering this legal twist was the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent judgements in both the Ciminelli v. U.S. and Percoco v. U.S. cases. These cases had nothing to do with soccer but everything to do with the scope of federal fraud prosecutions. Like a referee overruling a penalty after consulting the VAR, these decisions reminded prosecutors of the boundaries.
Judge Chen, having sifted through these top court directions, reached a startling conclusion: U.S. criminal law might not have the reach to tackle alleged bribes within CONMEBOL, the private soccer federation in South America. It’s as if one were trying to play by European soccer rules in a South American league match.
