Fifa 'failed to probe' Sri Lanka football corruption

By Saroj Pathirana
BBC Sinhala service

Fifa said it provided $250,000 a year for the last ten years for Sri Lanka and
another $3.5m after the Asian tsunami in December 2004

Anti-graft campaigners in Sri Lanka have accused the world football governing
body, Fifa, of not carrying out a proper investigation on allegations of serious
corruption in Sri Lanka football.
Ravaya journalist Tiran Kumara Bangamaarachchi and Daily Mirror columnist Vijitha
Fernando say the world body has failed to take any action though they have been reporting
serious corruption in the game for years.
Denying the accusations, Fifa says it is monitoring all financial transactions of member
bodies.
"All financial transactions are made to accounts belonging to the federations. This is
checked by FIFA as well as independent auditors at both local and global level," Fifa media
office told BBC Sinhala service, Sandeshaya.
The world governing body admitted that it provided over $7m for the development of
football in Sri Lanka over the last decade but critics say much of it has been unaccounted
for.
Fifa said it provided $250,000 a year for the last ten years
for Sri Lanka and another $3.5m after the Asian tsunami in
December 2004.
However, journalists and anti-corruption campaigners have

World football governing body, Fifa

Over the years, there is no

visible development in football
although money has been
pouring in. If Football
Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL)
spent the money on players,
we should have seen the
emergence of talented players
Manilal Fernando did not answer
Ravaya
Tiran Kumara
repeated journalist
calls after initially
requesting
Bangamaarachchi
the BBC to call him back

All financial transactions

are made to accounts
belonging to the federations.
This is checked by FIFA as well
as independent auditors at
both local and global level

been raising serious questions

about whether the funds were
indeed used for the benefit of
When we do not have
fixtures some of our players do
other jobs or simply sit at
home
Fifa says no tsunami projects were
completed at the time when Mr Blatter
visited Sri Lanka in 2006

Sri Lanka national football captain,

Rohana Ruvanthilleka