Harold Mayne-Nicholls, 2018, 2022 FIFA World Cup Bids Inspector, Banned 7 Years

The controversy surrounding FIFA and the 2018 and 2022 World Cups continued on Monday, as the organisation's Ethics Committee banned former Chilean Football Association President and World Cup bids inspector Harold Mayne-Nicholls from all football-related activities for seven years.

FIFA released a statement via their official website, saying:

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The adjudicatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee, chaired by Hans-Joachim Eckert, has decided to ban Harold Mayne-Nicholls, former chairman of the Bid Evaluation Group for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups and former Chilean Football Association President, from taking part in any kind of football-related activity at national and international level for a period of seven years.

The decision was taken following a hearing in the presence of the accused and the chairman of the investigatory chamber of the Ethics Committee, Dr Cornel Borbely.

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Football writer Dave Phillips provided comments from chairman Cornel Borbely:

Per FIFA's official statement, the members of the Ethics Committee are not allowed any details of the investigation, and more details will be made public once the final decision comes into effect. The Associated Press' Rob Harris could share one key piece of information, however:

Sky News' Paul Kelso noticed this odd detail:

FIFA handed the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar, respectively, a decision that was controversial at the time and since led to numerous investigations. Qatar's World Cup bid in particular was widely criticised due to the country's climate, which makes a summer World Cup virtually impossible.

There are also questions about the bidding process, and according to the Daily Mirror's Christopher Bucktin, the FBI is currently conducting an investigation that could lead to both nations being stripped of the tournaments.

As of right now, details of Mayne-Nicholls' transgressions and the reason he has been suspended have not yet been made public. 

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