IRS investigates Warner’s CONCACAF legacy

Concacaf president Jeffrey Webb confirmed on Thursday that the United States’ Internal Revenue Services (IRS), accounting firm BDO International and global legal company Sidley Austin LLP are working in tandem to scrutinize the legacy of his predecessor and Trinidad and Tobago’s National Security Minister Jack Warner.

The CONCACAF Executive was due to receive a report of these investigations at an extraordinary congress this month but Webb claimed the scale of the operation has forced a postponement until the first quarter of 2013.

“This audit is a massive undertaking that will set our financial house straight and ensure that CONCACAF’s operations are executed in a responsible and ethical manner going forward,” said Webb, via a media release. “This initiative was inspired by the new CONCACAF’s commitment to full accountability and transparency and it is essential that we get this right so we can move on to focus on our true purpose, the development of the game.”

Photo: Cayman Islands’ Jeffrey Webb is sandwiched by FIFA President Sepp Blatter (left) and then CONCACAF President Jack Warner during friendlier times for the trio.

Warner was CONCACAF president from 1991 to 2011 when he quit after being indicted by FIFA for allegedly facilitating the bribery of Caribbean Football Union (CFU) officials.

Webb, the 47-year-old former Cayman Islands Football Association (CIFA) president, replaced Warner at the CONCACAF helm in May while the 38-year-old Colombia-born Enrique Sanz, a former director at football marketing company Traffic, was named as the successor to outgoing general secretary Chuck Blazer.

It appears that Webb and the present CONCACAF Executive are not prepared to forgive and forget its past.

In a release to the CONCACAF member associations, Webb insisted that the confederation was still investigating the ownership of the João Havelange Centre of Excellence in Macoya.

Photo: The controversial João Havelange Centre of Excellence in Macoya, Trinidad.

Wired868 was first to prove that Warner purchased the Centre of Excellence—then titled the Ansa Mc Al Warehouses Limited—from Trinidad Guardian Newspaper owner and business magnate Andrew Sabga on 7 October 1998.

The Chaguanas West MP claimed the Centre of Excellence was meant to be a gift for Caribbean football from ex-FIFA president João Havelange and was funded by the confederation. But, even after his ceremonious departure from the global football body, Warner has not relinquished the lucrative Macoya-based property.

Webb revealed that Sidley Austin LLP is reviewing the matter to determine if the confederation has any legal right to the Centre of Excellence and whether there were any loans or guarantees taken out on CONCACAF property.

Webb also said that CONCACAF may not have fulfilled its income and/or employment tax obligations and had not filed the necessary forms to maintain its not-for-profit status.

“BDO and the attorneys are working with the IRS with the goal of obtaining a retroactive reinstatement of CONCACAF’s exempt status,” said Webb, “(and) to assure that CONCACAF and its affiliated entity are in full compliance with applicable tax laws.”


Webb said that the review of Warner and Blazer’s tenure would be “examined and addressed to the maximum extent possible.”

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About Lasana Liburd

Lasana Liburd is the managing director and chief editor at Wired868.com and a journalist with over 20 years experience at several Trinidad and Tobago and international publications including Play the Game, World Soccer, UK Guardian and the Trinidad Express.

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10 comments

  1. It is good that it is being investigated by an independant body. In the meantime people do not be quick to judge the individual. Let us treat him how we will like to be treated ourselves. Trinis are so quick to jump on every bandwagon that put down and be judge and jury, sometimes only beacause we “have to say something”. Patience people. In the meantime let the gentleman do his work.

    • It’s not about having “patience”, An example of how corrupt this country is, the PSC closed the bribery case against Warner and misled the public, saying that they were acting on the advice of the DPP, which the latter denied the very next day. And what came of that………nothing!!!!!, as usual. People are fed up of persons like Warner getting away with everything without even a proper investigation being done, and then being lied to about it, to add insult to injury. There are so many allegations hanging over this man’s head, and life goes on…………Now he’s in charge of the same people who is supposed to have him investigated. Smh………….

  2. Could not have said it better myself!!!!!!!!!!

  3. Time our prime minister do her job and fire this man… he continues to make our country and this government look bad locally, regionally and internationally. It is amazing how it works for them. When other ministers are found doing something wrong they are instantly fired however, although this man is under investigation both locally and internationally rather than being demoted he is being promoted. Complete double standards…. one wonders if what Mr panday said about a year ago is true… that the reason Mr warner is still in government is because he has some trump card over the PM because there is enough evidence or questions for the prime minister to Legitimately remove him.

  4. You can run but you cannot hide Jack! Soon all your evil, crooked tiefing will be exposed! You ought to be in prison, not be a damn Minister in Government!

  5. This great news I think,and it should put more pressure on the Government to do their own investigation but we all know that’s not going to happen right?

    • CONCACAF had little or no money when Jack Warner took over , think on that . Jack is the hardest working Minister in T&T and the best MP Chaguanas West ever had .

      • Hardest working Minister in T&T?? In your opinion anyway, which you are entitled to of course. What about all the allegations hanging over his head? The bribery charges, and the Haitian relief scandals just to name two of many. Should we just pretend those things never happened because you think he is the “hardest working Minister”?

      • Ha Ha Ha the Trolls and aicko are eveywhere even here. Name one project that has been started and finished by Mr Warner not his PR that has served the entire country,

    • Hell may freeze over before this government yields to any kind of pressure to do the right thing.

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