The easy money of the drug trade entices not only players, but officials in professional soccer as well. In the February 2009 "," Spanish police for allegedly using their ties to the sport as a cover for an international drug trafficking ring stretching from Argentina to Europe.
The names included one current and another ex-professional player, as well as several recruiting agents. Authorities said the head of the ring was Zoran Matijevic, who Spanish newspaper El Pais . He and his associate Pedrag Stankovic, a former player with Hercules de Alicante CF, were accused of directly financing the purchase of at least 600 kilos of cocaine as part of the smuggling scheme.
FIFA moved quickly to control the damage on its image. Following Mr. Matijevic's arrest, the federation said that it , and that this practice was conducted by national associations only. In its statement, FIFA added it "strongly condemned any criminal activities which may be, even if indirectly, associated to football."
