October 31, (THEWILL) – Former Nigerian national team coach Samson Siasia’s lawsuit against FIFA contesting his lifetime ban for rigging matches, which was ultimately reduced to five years, has been dismissed.
Because the disagreement occurred outside of the United States and was adjudicated under Swiss law, and Siasia lived in Atlanta, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein found he had “no conceivable basis” to exercise jurisdiction in Manhattan Federal Court.
Siasia’s lawyer, Nitor Egbarin, had no immediate response since he was still reviewing the verdict.
Siasia was found to have broken FIFA’s code of ethics by participating in a bribery plot relating to a plan to manipulate Australian matches in 2019.
In August, Siasia filed a lawsuit against FIFA, alleging that the case against him was based on “grossly insufficient evidence” consisting solely of emails that were “never explained” to FIFA, and that he was denied the right to cross-examine witnesses.
He claimed FIFA’s investigation was an illegal exercise of “government function,” infringing on his constitutional, federal civil rights, and state law rights under US law.
On their part, FIFA stated that Siasia’s action had no place in a US court and that his claims were without merit.
As THEWILL reported, Siasia’s lifetime suspension was reduced to five years and his 50,000 Swiss franc ($54,585) fine was lifted in June by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which said the lifetime ban was too harsh for a first infraction.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
