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FBI Probe Launched Into Outgoing FIFA President Blatter - Reports

© AP Photo / Keystone,Ennio LeanzaFIFA President Joseph Blatter s attends a news conference following the FIFA Executive Committee meeting in Zurich, Switzerland
FIFA President Joseph Blatter s attends a news conference following the FIFA Executive Committee meeting in Zurich, Switzerland - Sputnik International
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Following his sudden resignation as President of FIFA Tuesday, Sepp Blatter finds himself the subject of investigation by US prosecutors and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Joseph S. Blatter - Sputnik International
FIFA President Sepp Blatter Resigns
His decision to quit came just days after he was re-elected for a fifth term to the post he has held since 1998. The week prior to stepping down, the FBI arrested seven FIFA officials as part of an investigation into fraud and corruption in soccer's governing body.

The news of the possible investigation comes from ABC news citing sources familiar with the case. 

Blatter was re-elected at FIFA's 65th Congress with only one challenger —  Prince Ali bin Hussein of Jordan — who withdrew after the first round of voting Friday. 

The United States, and many others, had expressed their disappointment at his re-election, which seemed to indicate that the highest levels of the organization would not be held responsible for years of corruption and an alleged $150 million in bribes. 

"While we are disappointed in the result of the election, we will continue to push for meaningful change within FIFA," said  United States Soccer Federation (USSF) President Sunil Gulati in a statement following the elections.

Meanwhile, some have questioned why the initial charges against soccer's governing association are coming from the United States — not traditionally a soccer-heavy nation. The US government has maintained that it is not trying to interfere in the internal politics of the organization.

US Department of State spokesperson Jeff Rathke reiterated Thursday that the charges brought by the US Department of Justice "don’t have anything to do with that topic."

The United States' soccer association has said it is disappointed in the reelection of Sepp Blatter as the head of world soccer's governing body, the same week that seven top FIFA executives were arrested on corruption charges. - Sputnik International
US Disappointed With Sepp Blatter’s Re-Election as FIFA President

As top football executives in the Americas are losing their positions over the FIFA corruption investigation, the timing of the revelations — on the eve of the Blatter's re-election- seemed to some designed for a shake up.

"The suggestion that we are trying to have an influence over the internal processes in FIFA, that’s not the point," Rathke said. 

But Blatter has suggested that the United States has a particular interest in removing him from leadership

"There are signs that do not lie: the Americans were candidates for the World Cup 2022 and they lost," Blatter told the Swiss RTS television channel shortly after his re-election.

He added that the United States is the number one sponsor of Jordan and Prince Ali Bin Hussein, who was 79-year-old Blatter’s only rival in Friday's FIFA presidency vote.

"If the Americans have to do with money or criminal offenses which relate to North and South American citizens, they should arrest them there, but not in Zurich during a congress," Blatter added.

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