By Andrew Warshaw
October 22 – Amos Adamu (pictured), the Nigerian official provisionally suspended by FIFA over bribery allegations, broke his silence today by insisting he had done nothing wrong.
Adamu is claimed to have asked for £500,000 ($800,000) – to build four artificial pitches in his country – to be paid into his own bank account.
Yet taking the same line as his fellow Executive Committee member Reynald Temarii, he stressed he did not trade cash for votes.
In a statement, he said: “Allegations were made against me by a British newspaper on October 17, 2010, which prompted a FIFA ethics committee meeting yesterday which concluded I should be provisionally suspended from my FIFA duties.
“While I wholly refute all allegations made, I fully support the inquiry since it is important that these claims are thoroughly investigated.
“Only by doing this will FIFA – and the wider football community – be able to trust that its appointed representatives are beyond reproach.”
Reporters from the Sunday Times posed as lobbyists for a consortium of private American companies who wanted to help secure the World Cup for the United States.
The Sunday Times has provided all its evidence to FIFA – 90 minutes of footage and a full transcript – and further revelations are expected at the weekend.
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