U.S. Lawyer Heading FIFA Soccer Corruption Probe Quits

IFA, world soccer’s governing body, met to discuss a path forward after the U.S. lawyer who had worked on a corruption investigation for two years quit in protest over how the organization handled his report. Michael Garcia resigned after a version of his report which he said contained “numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations,” was used by a German judge to clear Russia and Qatar of claims of corruption in their successful bids to host future World Cup tournaments in 2018 and 2022. Garcia urged FIFA to release the full 430-page report, and when the organization refused, Garcia quit. “No independent governance committee, investigator, or arbitration panel can change the culture of an organization,” Garcia wrote in his resignation letter. “[I]t is the lack of leadership on these issues within FIFA that leads me to conclude that my role in this process is at an end.”