Villar (right) alongside former Fifa vice president Michel Platini. Ivan Sekretarev
Controversy
Suspended Spanish football president resigns as vice president of Fifa and Uefa amid corruption investigation
Angel Maria Villar had been head of the Spanish football federation for almost three decades before he was suspended following his arrest last Tuesday.
SPANISH FOOTBALL CHIEF Angel Maria Villar, in custody on corruption charges, has resigned as vice-president of both Fifa and Uefa.
The 67-year-old’s near three-decade tenure as head of the Spanish federation ended this week when he was suspended following his arrest on 18 July.
“Mr Villar has stood down from his post as senior vice-president at FIFA,” a spokesperson for world football’s ruling body said.
Uefa said his resignation, tendered “with immediate effect” on Wednesday, had been accepted by the organisation’s president Aleksander Ceferin.
Advertisement
Ceferin “thanked him for his many years of service to European football”.
“Following his resignation, Mr Villar will no longer have any official functions at our organisation.
Villar pictured delivering the 2015/16 La Liga title to Lionel Messi. SIPA USA / PA Images
SIPA USA / PA Images / PA Images
“In view of the on-going court proceedings in Spain, we have no further comments to make on this matter,” the statement concluded.
Villar was detained with his son as part of a fraud probe launched last year.
Also arrested in a series of early morning raids on federation headquarters and other sites last week were the Spanish federation’s financial vice-president Juan Padron and Ramon Hernandez Baussou, general secretary of the Tenerife federation.
They face charges including falsifying documents, misappropriation of funds, collusion and administrative breaches linked to skimming profits from international friendly games.
Villar is a former Spain and Athletic Bilbao midfielder. He had been head of the Spanish football federation for 29 years and has been replaced by Juan Luis Larrea, who has been named as interim president.
The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!
Suspended Spanish football president resigns as vice president of Fifa and Uefa amid corruption investigation
SPANISH FOOTBALL CHIEF Angel Maria Villar, in custody on corruption charges, has resigned as vice-president of both Fifa and Uefa.
The 67-year-old’s near three-decade tenure as head of the Spanish federation ended this week when he was suspended following his arrest on 18 July.
“Mr Villar has stood down from his post as senior vice-president at FIFA,” a spokesperson for world football’s ruling body said.
Uefa said his resignation, tendered “with immediate effect” on Wednesday, had been accepted by the organisation’s president Aleksander Ceferin.
Ceferin “thanked him for his many years of service to European football”.
“Following his resignation, Mr Villar will no longer have any official functions at our organisation.
“In view of the on-going court proceedings in Spain, we have no further comments to make on this matter,” the statement concluded.
Villar was detained with his son as part of a fraud probe launched last year.
Also arrested in a series of early morning raids on federation headquarters and other sites last week were the Spanish federation’s financial vice-president Juan Padron and Ramon Hernandez Baussou, general secretary of the Tenerife federation.
They face charges including falsifying documents, misappropriation of funds, collusion and administrative breaches linked to skimming profits from international friendly games.
Villar is a former Spain and Athletic Bilbao midfielder. He had been head of the Spanish football federation for 29 years and has been replaced by Juan Luis Larrea, who has been named as interim president.
The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!
Man City romp to 4-1 friendly win over Real Madrid
Monaco insist there’s no Mbappe deal in place with Real Madrid
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Angel Maria Villar La Liga Controversy FIFA Scandal Spanish Football UEFA