SANTO ANDRE (Brazil): Franz Beckenbauer said on Sunday that he was ready to answer questions from FIFA about an investigation into World Cup bidding by June 27 and believed that should remove any justification for its 90-day ban on him.
In a statement released via Twitter on Sunday, his spokesman Marcus Hoefl said that Beckenbauer’s readiness to answer the questions by FIFA’s ethics committee lifts any reason to uphold the ban issued by soccer’s world governing body on Friday.
“Franz Beckenbauer told FIFA yesterday that he would answer the questions by the ethics committee investigation by June 27 at the latest,” Hoefl said.
“It is our understanding that there is thus no longer any “suspicion of a possible violation” against FIFA rules so we are assuming that the provisional sanctions against him will be removed without delay.”
Hoefl added: “This procedure is thus completed: Franz Beckenbauer will answer the questions in writing in German.”
He added that Beckenbauer was “extremely surprised” by the FIFA ban and said FIFA never gave him a chance to answer the charges that he was under suspicion and not informed in advance that the decision to ban him was looming.
“It was the first time that FIFA didn’t know how to contact me on the telephone,” Beckenbauer is quoted as saying in the statement. (Reuters)