Former Fifa boss on trial over TV rights

Former Fifa secretary-general Jerome Valcke and the chair of Qatar-based media group BeIN Sports, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, went on trial in Switzerland on Monday over the award of television rights for the World Cup and Confederations Cup.

The 59-year-old Valcke, already banned by Fifa’s ethics committee for 10 years for ethics violations, has been charged with accepting bribes, aggravated criminal mismanagement and falsification of documents.

Al-Khelaifi, who is also president of French champions Paris St Germain and sits on the executive committee of European soccer body Uefa, has been charged with inciting Valcke to commit aggravated criminal mismanagement.

Both men, who were present in court, deny wrongdoing and Al-Khelaifi ’ s lawyers have said that most of the case does not apply to their client.

The trial in Switzerland is expected to last until September 25 and the three federal judges are expected to deliver a verdict by the end of October.

The Swiss attorney-general’s office has alleged that between 2013 and 2015 Valcke exploited his Fifa role to influence the award of media rights for various World Cup and Confederations Cup tournaments “to favour media partners that he preferred ”.

Valcke also received exclusive use of a villa belonging to Al-Khelaifi in Sardinia for 18 months, it said, without having to pay rent estimated at between 900,000 and € 1.8m.

Valcke, 59, was secretarygeneral of world fooball’s ruling body for eight years until 2015, overseeing the organisation of the World Cup in SA in 2010 and Brazil in 2014.