Reports in Germany claim bribes were paid to FIFA members to allow the country to host the 2006 World Cup.
The tournament was awarded to Germany ahead of South Africa, in what was a surprise move, with Italy going on to win the tournament, beating France in the final.
Der Spiegel alleges that a slush fund was set up by the bidding committee, which was financed by then-Adidas CEO Robert Louis-Dreyfus, to the tune of around €9m.
Dreyfus, the magazine alleges, lent the money to the bidding committee, who never declared it in their budget.
Reports in Germany claim bribes were paid to FIFA members to allow the country to host the 2006 World Cup.
The tournament was awarded to Germany ahead of South Africa, in what was a surprise move, with Italy going on to win the tournament, beating France in the final.
Der Spiegel alleges that a slush fund was set up by the bidding committee, which was financed by then-Adidas CEO Robert Louis-Dreyfus, to the tune of around €9m.
Dreyfus, the magazine alleges, lent the money to the bidding committee, who never declared it in their budget.
The loan is said to have been used to secure the four votes belonging to Asian representatives on the 24-person FIFA Executive Committee.
All of the four voted for Germany, along with the European representatives, allowing the country to beat South Africa 12-11 after Charles Dempsey of New Zealand unexpectedly abstained from casting his vote.
Had he voted for South Africa, as expected, the 12-12 vote would have seen President Sepp Blatter make the decision, with the Swiss favouring South Africa.
When the time came for the loan to be repayed, Der Spiegel claims that FIFA helped to cover up the payment, with the Germans making a €6.7m contribution for an event at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium which was later cancelled.
The money was reportedly paid into a FIFA bank account, and then transferred to a Swiss account owned by Dreyfus.
The German Federation has acknowledged that it is possible that the payment was not used for the stated purpose, but deny that it was used to bribe FIFA officials.