BRASILIA: One of Brazil’s most senior judges has attacked the regime of scandal-enshrouded Ricardo Teixeira at the head of the Brazilian football confederation writes KEIR RADNEDGE.

Fausto Martin De Sanctis, speaking at a seminar about money-laundering in football, said the domestic games was notorious for the number of fraud cases. He blamed officials for taking advantage of the weakness of the law where sports cash was concerned.

Teixeira, president of the CBF, stepped down recently as boss of the 2014 World Cup organising authority under pressure of parliamentary and fraud squad investigations into fraud allegations. He is also a long-serving member of the executive committee of world federation FIFA.

De Sanctis criticised a lack of transparency over the CBF’s affairs and demanded a full-scale inquiry into his financial affairs.

He also criticisied the appointment, by Teixeira, of former World Cup hero Ronaldo as new president of the World Cup organisers. De Sanctis said it was clear that Ronaldo was being used merely as a ‘front man’ and, as former player, should have been barred if a ‘proper persons’ appointments system were in place.

On money-laundering issues, Sanctis said that in 2007 more than 1,000 young players had been transferred abroad yet only 346 had been registered properly.