BERLIN — A team of legal advisers investigating a suspicious payment linked to Germany’s successful bid to host the 2006 World Cup found no indication that votes were bought, but it did not rule out the possibility of corruption because it was unable to establish who ultimately received the funds, according to a report released on Friday.
Christian Duve, a partner with the Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer legal team, which carried out the independent investigation at the request of the German soccer federation, known as the D.F.B., said in presenting the report that questions also remained about the role of Franz Beckenbauer, a soccer legend in the country.