A federal jury in New York found a former 21st Century Fox executive guilty Thursday of an alleged scheme to bribe FIFA officials for lucrative soccer broadcast rights.
Starting News: Hernan Lopez was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, but co-defendant Carlos Martinez was acquitted of the same charges, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.
- Argentine sports marketing firm Full Play Group SA was also convicted of the alleged scheme.
Big picture: The case comes from a major investigation into corruption in international soccer and FIFA, which has resulted in several convictions since 2015, Reuters writes.
Increase: Prosecutors said Lopez was involved in an alleged scheme to pay millions of dollars in bribes to South American soccer officials to secure broadcast rights to the Copa Libertadores — the region’s most popular club tournament, among other events.
- He also “relied on loyalty secured by the payment of bribes” to advance Fox’s business interests, including obtaining confidential information about bidding for the rights to broadcast the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments in the US, rights that Fox successfully won, he said. US Attorney’s Office.
What we watch: Lopez faces up to 40 years in prison and millions of dollars in fines, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
- Full Play faces millions of dollars in financial penalties, according to prosecutors.