fifa ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – OCTOBER 20: The FIFA logo is seen outside the FIFA headquarters during to the FIFA Executive Committee Meeting on October 20, 2011 in Zurich, Switzerland. During this third meeting of the year, held on two days, the FIFA Executive Committee will approve the match schedules for the FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 and the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil. (Photo by Harold Cunningham/Getty Images)

While a lot of attention has been heaped on big fish like Sepp Blatter, Jeff Webb and others in FIFA’s ongoing bribery cases, little attention has been paid in the media to the biggest of issues — actual bribery to get contracts for FIFA properties.

On Thursday, it was announced that Aaron Davidson, the Miami-based executive of disgraced Brazilian soccer marketing company, Traffic Group, would be pleading guilty in a federal bribery case.

All in all, that makes 17 people and two companies out of 42 total defendants who have pled out in the massive FIFA corruption case that is still going in the United States alone.

Davidson was supposed to be one of seven defendants to go to trial in early 2017, but this plea allows him to not face trail.

He was facing major jail time as part of a scandal that has seen nearly $200 million in bribes and kickbacks that were sought or exchanged hands according to the U.S. Justice Department.

This could be a long, drawn out situation as plenty of defendants are from outside the United States and have to undergo extradition.

Just how difficult is that process? This past Tuesday, an Argentinian judge denied a request to extradite father-and-son sports marketing team Hugo and Mariano Jinkis and former regional soccer chief Eduardo Deluca.

So, don’t expect the headlines to stop anytime soon.

[Reuters]

About Andrew Coppens

Andy is a contributor to The Comeback as well as Publisher of Big Ten site talking10. He also is a member of the FWAA and has been covering college sports since 2011. Andy is an avid soccer fan and runs the Celtic FC site The Celtic Bhoys. If he's not writing about sports, you can find him enjoying them in front of the TV with a good beer!