Fifa gives Mohamed bin Hammam a 90-day ban pending probe

Fifa has slapped a temporary ban on the Qatari pending the outcome of an investigation into AFC finances.

Mohamed Bin Hammam says know his wish is to just quite "and retire" from football administration.
Powered by automated translation

Fifa announced on Thursday that the two new chambers on its ethics committee had provisionally banned Qatar's Mohamed bin Hammam pending the outcome of an investigation into Asian Football Confederation (AFC) finances.

Football's world governing body said in a statement on its website that the ban from "any kind of football-related activity at national and international level" would last up to 90 days.

The decision, taken at the request of the chairmen of the ethics committee's investigatory and adjudicatory chambers, was designed "to prevent interference" with the investigation into fresh corruption claims against the former AFC chief.

Bin Hammam was last week provisionally replaced after nine years as AFC president and suspended for 30 days after an external audit into the accounts during his time in charge.

Last Thursday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned a Fifa life ban relating to alleged corrupt payments he made to organisation members during campaigning to unseat the long-standing president Sepp Blatter.

But the Lausanne-based tribunal stopped short of exonerating the 63 year old, who spearheaded Qatar's successful bid to win the 2022 World Cup, saying only that the case was "not proven" due to lack of insufficient evidence.

Fifa's latest statement said the ethics committee would be assessing the report on the AFC accounts and "assessing the prospects of collecting further evidence relevant to the recently closed CAS proceedings".

Bin Hammam has insisted the charges were politically motivated.

"Last year really I have seen a very bad, very ugly face of the sport and of the football, you know, jealousy," he said. "My wish now is just to quit, actually, and retire."

Follow us