Soccer-Firm in ticket scalping probe says not in touch with CEO

Reuters

RIO DE JANEIRO, July 11 (Reuters) - The ticketing firm at the centre of a World Cup scalping scandal was not in contact with its chief executive who disappeared after a Brazilian court ordered his arrest, it said on Friday. MATCH Services executive Ray Whelan was filmed on Thursday evening by security cameras leaving a luxury beachside hotel in Rio de Janeiro. Police arrived shortly afterwards having gone to the hotel to arrest him in a probe over the illegal resale of World Cup tickets. Ten other suspects, part of an alleged scalping ring at the centre of the investigation, are in custody. Whelan had been arrested earlier in the week but released pending a court order. The group is alleged to have illegally resold tickets originally allocated to soccer federations and other VIPs. Brazilian police say the ring aimed to earn up to 200 million reais ($90 million). Swiss hospitality company MATCH, which is also being investigated by Brazil's anti-trust authority, is contracted by world soccer's governing body FIFA to arrange ticketing and hospitality packages for the World Cup. The probe comes as pressure mounts on FIFA, soccer's world governing body, over accusations of corruption and a perceived lack of transparency of its business practices. The organisation is also under fire over alleged bribes paid by Qatar in exchange for the right to host the 2022 World Cup. MATCH defended Whelan in a statement saying it did not regard him as a fugitive because he remained with his lawyer and the terms of his previous release did not restrict his movement. "We understand that any accused in Brazil has the fundamental right to resist a coercion that he believes to be arbitrary and illegal," the firm said. "MATCH remains absolutely confident that any charges raised against Ray will be rebutted," it added. The firm has denied any wrongdoing in either probe. MATCH is the main provider of hospitality packages for the World Cup and paid $240 million for the exclusive rights to sell corporate hospitality at the 2010 World Cup and this one. ($1 = 2.22 reais) (Reporting by Stephen Eisenhammer; editing by Ken Ferris)