https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Switzerland in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Disgraced former FIFA chief Sepp Blatter will defy a ban to attend two World Cup matches and also meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, his spokesman said on Monday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180618/blatter-to-defy-fifa-ban-to-attend-world-cup-and-meet-putin Mon, 18 Jun 2018 22:22:58 +0200 blatter-to-defy-fifa-ban-to-attend-world-cup-and-meet-putin The former head of world football Sepp Blatter said Saturday that claims by US women's goalkeeper Hope Solo that he had grabbed her backside were "absurd". https://www.thelocal.ch/20171111/sepp-blatter-accused-of-sexual-assault-at-awards-ceremony Sat, 11 Nov 2017 16:01:10 +0100 sepp-blatter-accused-of-sexual-assault-at-awards-ceremony Ex-Fifa president Sepp Blatter was engaged by the Swiss government in a secret mission to try to oust the president of Burundi last year, it has emerged. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160421/blatter-biography-fifa-boss-was-swiss-secret-agent Thu, 21 Apr 2016 12:59:36 +0200 blatter-biography-fifa-boss-was-swiss-secret-agent Switzerland has opened a criminal investigation targeting Fifa's ex-secretary general Jerome Valcke, who was Sepp Blatter's right-hand man before he was fired from the organization over corruption, Swiss prosecutors said on Thursday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160318/swiss-pursue-fifas-valcke-as-salaries-finally-revealed Fri, 18 Mar 2016 10:04:04 +0100 swiss-pursue-fifas-valcke-as-salaries-finally-revealed Fifa on Wednesday demanded tens of millions of dollars in damages from the "sordid" officials now facing charges in the United States over mass bribery scandals that have rocked world football. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160316/fifa-demands-damages-out-of-forfeited-bribes Wed, 16 Mar 2016 14:31:26 +0100 fifa-demands-damages-out-of-forfeited-bribes French authorities have searched the Paris offices of the French Football Federation in connection with Switzerland's criminal investigation targeting former Fifa president Sepp Blatter, the Swiss attorney general said on Wednesday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160309/french-seize-blatter-documents-in-paris-raid Wed, 09 Mar 2016 10:15:27 +0100 french-seize-blatter-documents-in-paris-raid Ex-Venezuelan football federation president Rafael Esquivel was extradited on Monday from Switzerland to the United States to face corruption charges in the roiling Fifa graft scandal, Swiss justice officials said. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160308/swiss-extradite-football-chief-on-bribery-charge Tue, 08 Mar 2016 09:41:15 +0100 swiss-extradite-football-chief-on-bribery-charge A Fifa appeal committee on Wednesday reduced bans against Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini to six years but maintained they were still guilty of ethics breaches. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160225/blatter-and-platini-have-bans-reduced-on-appeal Thu, 25 Feb 2016 09:40:28 +0100 blatter-and-platini-have-bans-reduced-on-appeal The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said it will decide by Thursday whether to suspend Fifa's presidential vote after candidate Prince Ali bin al Hussein filed a case seeking a delay. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160223/prince-calls-for-fifa-vote-to-be-suspended Tue, 23 Feb 2016 15:49:35 +0100 prince-calls-for-fifa-vote-to-be-suspended An authorized biography of Sepp Blatter written by the shamed Fifa president's former spokesman will be released next month, the publisher said on Tuesday, four days before an election to choose Blatter's successor. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160223/blatter-biography-gets-march-release-date Tue, 23 Feb 2016 14:04:46 +0100 blatter-biography-gets-march-release-date Fifa's disciplinary committee on Monday banned the former head of Thai football Worawi Makudi for three months and fined him 3,000 Swiss francs ($3,000, 2,700 euros) for violating the terms of a previous suspension. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160223/thai-football-boss-faces-further-fifa-ban Tue, 23 Feb 2016 09:29:20 +0100 thai-football-boss-faces-further-fifa-ban Fifa's disgraced president Sepp Blatter returned to the Zurich headquarters of world football's governing body on Tuesday to face an appeals committee he hopes will overturn his eight-year ban from the sport. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160216/blatter-faces-appeals-committee-at Tue, 16 Feb 2016 17:48:38 +0100 blatter-faces-appeals-committee-at The fallen head of European football, Michel Platini, appeared at Fifa's headquarters in Zurich on Monday to appeal his eight-year ban from the sport over ethics violations. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160215/platini-turns-up-at-fifa-hq-to-appeal-ban Mon, 15 Feb 2016 17:38:40 +0100 platini-turns-up-at-fifa-hq-to-appeal-ban Switzerland should be "grateful" to Sepp Blatter, the outgoing FIFA president and Swiss national who has been suspended from world football over ethics violations, his ex-wife was quoted as saying on Thursday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160107/blatters-ex-wife-defends-ousted-fifa-leader Thu, 07 Jan 2016 14:09:56 +0100 blatters-ex-wife-defends-ousted-fifa-leader Fifa investigators on Tuesday requested a nine-year ban against the body's suspended secretary general Jérôme Valcke, who was provisionally suspended from football in October for 90 days over corruption allegations. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160105/nine-year-ban-sought-for-top-fifa-official Tue, 05 Jan 2016 17:10:28 +0100 nine-year-ban-sought-for-top-fifa-official Switzerland on Wednesday handed over an initial package of bank documents to US prosecutors requested by Washington as evidence in the ongoing criminal cases targeting senior Fifa leadership. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151230/fifa-probe-switzerland-hands-bank-files-to-us Wed, 30 Dec 2015 16:58:10 +0100 fifa-probe-switzerland-hands-bank-files-to-us Facing criminal investigation and banned from VIP tribunes, Sepp Blatter cuts an increasingly lonely figure far from the football president who mixed with political heavyweights and tycoons. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151221/isolated-blatter-devastated-by-fifa-ban Mon, 21 Dec 2015 12:54:06 +0100 isolated-blatter-devastated-by-fifa-ban Fifa's suspended president Sepp Blatter says the world body's ethics watchdog have dropped corruption charges against him over a suspect $2-million payment. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151220/blatter-corruption-charges-dropped-against-me Sun, 20 Dec 2015 23:27:37 +0100 blatter-corruption-charges-dropped-against-me UPDATED: Suspended Fifa president Sepp Blatter appeared before the world body's ethics judges on Thursday to answer corruption allegations as Switzerland announced it had frozen tens of millions of dollars in accounts linked to football bribes. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151217/blatter Thu, 17 Dec 2015 15:09:53 +0100 blatter Suspended Fifa president Sepp Blatter on Tuesday questioned the credibility of the Zurich-based organization's ethics committee, days before he will appear before the panel in a bid to clear his name. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151215/blatter-questions-credibility-of-fifa-ethics-body Tue, 15 Dec 2015 19:32:44 +0100 blatter-questions-credibility-of-fifa-ethics-body