FFA to sue newspaper for defamation

July 7, 2010

Football Federation Australia (FFA) says it has launched legal action against the Fairfax newspaper group over claims it made that the FFA’s bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup was marred by corruption.

The FFA confirmed it had begun defamation proceedings against the newspaper in Sydney’s Supreme Court over a number of recent articles relating to the bid.

An FFA spokesperson said: “The articles contain serious defamatory allegations regarding the conduct of the Bid, including FFA’s accounting practices and its compliance with FIFA regulations and its Government Funding Agreement.

“FFA completely rejects these serious allegations and is seeking damages.”

The Australian Government had cleared the FFA of any wrongdoing after the Fairfax had claimed it had spent “secret millions” on lobbyist fees and gifts to FIFA executives and their wives.