By Andrew Warshaw
February 6 – Pressure is mounting on Spanish authorities to sort out the aftermath of veteran powerbroker Angel Villar’s demise after yet another intervention by FIFA.
Villar, a former FIFA and UEFA vice-president who ran Spanish football for over a generation, was suspended last July by Spain’s national sports council over corruption allegations after rejecting pleas to step down.
He has subsequently accused the Spanish government of meddling in the federation’s affairs in a clear attempt to influence FIFA’s thinking and on Monday, a FIFA delegation led by secretary general Fatma Samoura, met with Spanish officials to discuss concerns about government interference.
The meeting, which also included current stand-in Spanish FA boss Juan Luis Larrea, followed a FIFA missive in December reminding Spain that all member federations must manage their affairs independently. The warning reportedly came because of the government’s push to hold fresh elections.
Villar, his son and two other soccer officials were originally arrested on suspicion of improper management, misappropriation of funds, corruption and falsifying documents.
According to local reports, Monday’s meeting was relatively cordial with no question of Spain missing the World Cup for contravening FIFA statutes.
“The two delegations agreed on the need to clarify as quickly as possible and by legal means the exceptional situation of the RFEF ” said the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports in a statement.
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