Jack Warner, ex-vice president of FIFA, cited a fake article by satirical news site The Onion over the weekend in an effort to defend himself against the corruption charges he's facing.
In a video
statement posted Sunday to his personal WarnerTV.net website and social media accounts, Warner cited an Onion article titled,
“FIFA Frantically Announces 2015 Summer World Cup in the United States." The piece comically suggests that the sporting body created an alternative tournament to satisfy American officials angry that the U.S.A. was not selected to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cups.
In the video, Warner clarifies his opposition to the ongoing U.S. Justice Department investigation into alleged bribe taking and racketeering within FIFA's governing body. He is among 13 other FIFA officials indicted on federal corruption charges last week. He was arrested and later released on bail and now faces an extradition request from the U.S. government.
Warner responded to the allegations by accusing the U.S. of “double standards” for agreeing to host the fictional tournament in
cooperation with an organization it openly opposed, according to CNN.
"If FIFA is so bad, why is it the U.S.A. wants to keep the FIFA World Cup?" Warner asked in the video while pointing to a printout of the farcical report.
Warner then proceeded to elaborate on his own theory.
"Why is it the U.S. authorities sought to embarrass FIFA in Zurich? Something has to be wrong. I made the point to you over and over that all this . . . has stemmed from the failed U.S. bid to host the World Cup," he said.
After Warner’s Onion defends was criticized online, he pulled the video from his social media accounts and later replaced it with an edited version, which edits out his reference to the fake article. However, a YouTube channel uploaded the original video later on.
Along with serving as FIFA’s vice president, Warner also served as a member of parliament in the Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as leader of the
Independent and Liberal Party, according to The New York Times.
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