Soccer’s world governing body tried on Tuesday to distance the top deputy to Sepp Blatter, its president, from the heart of a deepening corruption inquiry, responding to allegations that linked Jérôme Valcke, FIFA’s secretary general, to payments made in 2008 that investigators believe amounted to $10 million in bribes.
In response to an article by The New York Times, FIFA said in a statement that the payments, which are at the center of a United States Department of Justice investigation that led to a 47-count indictment against soccer officials and sports marketing executives, were approved in 2007 by Julio Grondona.