Eduardo Li

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Li and the second or maternal family name is Sánchez.
Eduardo Li
Born
Eduardo Li Sánchez

(1958-11-11) 11 November 1958 (age 66)[1]
Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Eduardo Li Sánchez (Chinese: 爱德华多·李·桑切斯; pinyin: Àidéhuáduō·lǐ·sāngqièsī, born 11 November 1958) is a Costa Rican football administrator, FIFA executive committee member-elect, CONCACAF executive committee member, and former Costa Rican Football Federation (FEDEFUT) president. He co-founded Puntarenas F.C. with Adrián Castro Velásquez in June 2004. His paternal Chinese grandfather immigrated to Costa Rica in 1920.[2]

Li is involved in the 2015 FIFA corruption case, and was arrested in May 2015 in Switzerland to face corruption charges in the US.[3] Li was banned by FIFA Ethics Committee.[4]

On 18 December 2015, he was extradited to the United States.[5]

In October 2016 Li pleaded guilty to three charges in the Federal Courthouse in Brooklyn, New York. He admitted to have accepted more than $500,000 in bribes from different companies for television rights to Costa Rican football games for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Li was also charged with money laundering and wire fraud.[6][7]

In 2017 the FIFA suspended him for life.[8][9]

  1. ^ "Executive Committee". CONCACAF. Archived from the original on 20 January 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  2. ^ "FIFA-Gate: Costa Rica's Eduardo Li allegedly received 6-figure bribe, says US indictment". The Tico Times.
  3. ^ Apuzzo, Matt; Schmidt, Michael S.; Rashbaum, William K.; Borden, Sam. "FIFA Officials Arrested on Corruption Charges; Blatter Isn't Among Them". New York Times. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  4. ^ Jauregui, Andres (27 May 2015). "FIFA Officials Banned From Football-Related Activities In Wake Of Scandal". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  5. ^ "Eduardo Li se declara inocente pero seguirá detenido en Estados Unidos". nacion.com. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
  6. ^ "Eduardo Li pleads guilty in FIFA fraud case". The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate. 7 October 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  7. ^ Ruiz, Rebecca R. (7 October 2016). "Costa Rican Soccer Official Pleads Guilty in FIFA Corruption Case". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  8. ^ "FIFA suspends Eduardo Li for life -". The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate. 21 April 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  9. ^ "FIFA life ban for Li in bribery case". ESPN.com. 21 April 2017. Retrieved 17 November 2022.