In this December 9, 2005, picture, German football legend Franz Beckenbauer (left) and FIFA president Sepp Blatter are on stage before the final draw of the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Leipzig, Germany. (AFP)


AFP/Berlin


Franz Beckenbauer is under pressure to explain his part in Germany’s 2006 World Cup scandal after the emergence of a document directly linked to the legendary player and coach.
German football has lurched into a crisis over magazine Spiegel’s report last month alleging that the votes of four members of FIFA’s executive committee were bought in 2000, when Germany narrowly won the vote to host the 2006 finals.
At the centre of the scandal is a 6.7 million-euro ($7.2m) payment, which is alleged to have been used to purchase the support of FIFA’s executive committee.
The scandal took a dramatic twist last week when police carried out raids at the Frankfurt headquarters of the German Football Association (DFB) and led to Wolfgang Niersbach resigning as DFB president on Monday.
Despite that, a FIFA spokesman says Niersbach has informed the organisation he wants to remain a member of the executive committee of world football’s governing body.
State prosecutors in Germany have revealed three men—including Niersbach, ex-DFB president Theo Zwanziger and ex-general secretary Horst Schmidt—are being investigated for serious tax fraud surrounding the FIFA payment.
Despite his pivotal position in the 2006 World Cup—first in leading the successful bid and later as chairman of the organising committee—Beckenbauer, 70, has stayed tight-lipped in the last fortnight, even as Niersbach took “political responsibility” in resigning as DFB boss.
But now the DFB has confirmed reports of a draft agreement, signed in part by Beckenbauer, which German daily Bild claims was aimed at buying “votes for the German bid”.
The contract, which reportedly offers a lucrative friendly against Germany, but no cash, is with disgraced former CONCACAF president Jack Warner—who is banned for life by FIFA—but it remains unclear whether it was ever used.
“It’s an agreement that was signed by Franz Beckenbauer on the German side and Jack Warner, on the CONCACAF side,” confirmed DFB joint interim president Rainer Koch.
“In the contract there were no direct cash benefits promised by the German side... and there is no knowledge as to whether the agreement was completed.”
The document was reportedly signed in July 2000 -- four days before Germany beat South Africa by 12 votes to 11 for the right to host the 2006 World Cup finals.
Reinhard Rauball, who alongside Koch is co-interim president of the DFB, said Beckenbauer needs to explain himself.
“I would be pleased if Franz Beckenbauer used the chance to explain things,” said Rauball.
“The signature and the text of the contract makes it a difficult thing to clear up.”  
Beckenbauer is already being investigated by FIFA’s ethics committee, which is looking into the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals to Russia and Qatar respectively.
The Kitzbuehel-based agency representing Beckenbauer refused to comment yesterday to SID, an AFP subsidiary, but last month the German legend admitted making a “mistake” in the bidding process.
“In order to obtain a FIFA grant, we accepted a proposition coming from FIFA’s finance commission that the implicated parties should, in retrospect, have refused,” said the ‘Kaiser’, who captained the West Germany team that won the 1974 World Cup and then coached the side that won the trophy in 1990.
“As president of the organising committee at that time, I take responsibility for this mistake.”
Niersbach has said the 6.7 million-euro payment was to obtain a FIFA grant to fund the 2006 World Cup finals and insisted “votes were not bought and there was no slush fund”.
Ex-Germany striker Oliver Bierhoff, 47, has ruled himself out of the running to replace Niersbach as head of the German FA.

FIFA says Niersbach to remain executive committee member

Zurich: Former German FA president Wolfgang Niersbach will remain a member of the FIFA executive committee following his exit from the German soccer organisation amid a scandal over the 2006 World Cup, a FIFA spokesman said yesterday.
“We can confirm that Mr Niersbach has informed FIFA that he will remain in his functions as a member of the FIFA executive committee,” the spokesman said.
Niersbach resigned from the German FA on Monday, buckling under mounting pressure. He’s under investigation for tax evasion linked to a controversial 6.7 million euro ($7.16 million) payment to FIFA.