32 | Contingent liabilities

FIFA continues to participate in a number of investigations conducted by the Swiss Office of the Attorney General (“OAG”), in which FIFA is a private plaintiff and considered to be a damaged party. In 2020, investigations conducted by the OAG resulted in criminal trials and further trials are expected in 2022. The US Department of Justice (“DOJ”) has concluded the proceedings concerning FIFA, which it initiated in 2015. It confirmed FIFA’s “victim status” in relation to those investigations and awarded FIFA compensation by way of remission, in which monies forfeited by defendants to the US government are returned to victims of the defendants’ criminal schemes. Those funds have been entrusted to the FIFA Foundation for use in relation to football-related projects that will benefit people and communities across the globe. Taking into account that FIFA has fully cooperated and will continue to fully cooperate with the respective authorities within the boundaries of applicable law, the FIFA management is of the view that no provisions for fines, penalties or other payments of a punitive character or any other adjustments need to be made at this time to the consolidated financial statements.

Moreover, FIFA is currently involved in a number of legal disputes arising from its operating activities, where it considers the possibility of any outflow in settlement to be remote. Therefore, FIFA has not recognised a provision in relation to these legal matters.

The safeguarding of FIFA’s interest in the ongoing legal matters and the protection against currently known legal risks will, however, continue to generate some costs, which FIFA intends to limit to the strict minimum necessary.