Corrupt former FIFA official Blazer dead

AFP, LOS ANGELES: Corrupt football official-turned-whistleblower Chuck Blazer, whose evidence helped trigger the FIFA bribery scandal, died Wednesday, his lawyers said.

Blazer, who was banned for life from all football activities for corruption in 2015, had been battling cancer up to his death. He was 72.

“We are truly saddened by the passing of our client and friend, Chuck Blazer,” his lawyers said in a statement to the news agency. “His misconduct, for which he accepted full responsibility, should not obscure Chuck's positive impact on international soccer,” the statement added.

The bearded, hulking football official was a pivotal figure in the corruption scandal which convulsed FIFA in 2015 and ultimately led to the downfall of former supremo Sepp Blatter.

Yet for years Blazer himself was seen as emblematic of the worst excesses of FIFA during the Blatter era, unapologetically pocketing millions to fund a luxurious, globe-trotting VIP lifestyle. His notorious excesses included an $18,000-a-month apartment in Trump Tower in New York -- and a separate $6,000 unit in the same building just to keep his mob of unruly cats.

Corrupt former FIFA official Blazer dead

AFP, LOS ANGELES: Corrupt football official-turned-whistleblower Chuck Blazer, whose evidence helped trigger the FIFA bribery scandal, died Wednesday, his lawyers said. Blazer, who was banned for life from all football activities for corruption in 2015, had been battling cancer up to his death. He was 72. We are truly saddened by the passing of our client and friend, Chuck Blazer, his lawyers said in a statement to the news agency. His misconduct, for which he accepted full responsibility, should not obscure Chucks positive impact on international soccer, the statement added. The bearded, hulking football official was a pivotal figure in the corruption scandal which convulsed FIFA in 2015 and ultimately led to the downfall of former supremo Sepp Blatter. Yet for years Blazer himself was seen as emblematic of the worst excesses of FIFA during the Blatter era, unapologetically pocketing millions to fund a luxurious, globe-trotting VIP lifestyle. His notorious excesses included an $18,000-a-month apartment in Trump Tower in New York -- and a separate $6,000 unit in the same building just to keep his mob of unruly cats.