Bribe Allegation: Just had to be Jack (Warner)

You knew when FIFA Bribery was being talked of Jack Warner would be in the allegation mix.

And he is.

From the Guardian:

Jack Warner:

Who is he? He has been the president of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) since 1990 and a Fifa executive committee member for 27 years, and is a Fifa vice-president.

What are the allegations? That Warner ordered $84,240 worth of tickets for World Cup matches in South Africa this summer, in order to sell them on to ticket touts. If that had happened, it would certainly be a breach of Fifa rules; the programme describes it as "continued involvement in the corrupt sale of World Cup tickets". Warner declined to comment.

Is this new? Yes. Warner has previous form. In 2006, auditors Ernst and Young identified tickets bought in Warner's name for the World Cup in Germany were resold for three times the face value. A Fifa investigation subsequently found Warner's son Daryan played an active role, but "no concrete evidence" that Warner himself had been involved. Panorama claims Fifa privately ordered Warner's family company to donate $1m to charity to "compensate" for the money made from selling on the tickets.

What is the impact? Serious, depending how solidly it can be proven that the tickets were intended for resale. England's 2018 World Cup bid team has assiduously courted Warner for his votes.