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Club América owner Emilio Azcárraga Jean is taking an administrative leave as executive chairman of Grupo Televisa amid the U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the company’s dealings with FIFA officials.
Televisa, in a statement released Thursday, confirmed Azcárraga’s leave will take effect immediately and reiterated its cooperation with the probe.
“Grupo Televisa announced that its Board of Directors has approved a proposal by Mr. Emilio Azcárraga Jean, Executive Chairman of the Board, to take a leave of absence, effective immediately, while the investigation conducted by the United States Department of Justice, related to FIFA, is resolved. The Company continues to cooperate with the investigation,” the statement read.
In 2023, Televisa reached a $95 million settlement to resolve a lawsuit brought by U.S. investors who accused the company of bribing FIFA officials to secure the rights to four World Cup tournaments.
América and the Azteca Stadium, who are also owned by Grupo Televisa, operate as separate business units.
The FIFA investigation began in 2015 and has led to significant repercussions for the soccer governing body, as well as for its continental confederations.
Numerous companies and individuals in Latin America have faced fines due to various schemes related to television and marketing rights.
In 2017, Alejandro Burzaco, former executive director of the Argentinian company Torneos y Competencias testified that Televisa, alongside Brazilian media giant Globo, teamed with a marketing firm to make a $15 million bribe to a FIFA executive to help them secure broadcasting rights to the World Cups of 2026 and 2030.
Burzaco, a key witness at a U.S. bribery trial, testified that the deal was struck with long-time FIFA finance committee chairman Julio Grondona at a 2013 meeting in Zurich.
Back then, Televisa denied any wrongdoing in how it obtained the broadcasting rights for those World Cups.
Information from Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
