Soccer isn’t exactly a popular sport in the US. But the US Justice Department recently made a dramatic move that has been applauded by fans of the sport worldwide.
足球在美国并不算流行。但是美国司法部最近的一项惊人举动却得到了全世界球迷的拍手称赞。
US Justice Department officials and prosecutors announced on May 27 a sweeping indictment against 14 soccer officials from world soccer governing body FIFA and marketing executives, wrote The New York Times. These people have been accused of corrupting the sport through two decades of shadowy dealing and $150 million (930 million yuan) in bribes.
据《纽约时报》报道，5月27日，美国司法部官员及检察官对国际足联14名足球官员与市场营销主管提起了诉讼。这些人被控足球腐败，他们20年来一直在进行灰色交易，收受贿赂总计1亿5千万美元（9亿3千万人民币）。

Prior to the announcement, in the early morning of May 27, Swiss police came unannounced to a luxury hotel in Zurich and arrested seven FIFA officials. The men found themselves under arrest on federal charges that have usually been brought against mafia families or drug cartels, including racketeering, wire fraud, money laundering, and bribery.
起诉公布之前的5月27日清晨，瑞士警方悄悄潜入苏黎世一家豪华酒店，逮捕了7名国际足联高官。他们将面临美国联邦（法院）包括敲诈、电信诈骗、洗钱和贿赂等以往常用于黑手党或贩毒集团罪名的指控。。
US Attorney General Loretta Lynch was quoted by The New York Times as saying that the current charges are “only the beginning”, and are part of much broader global efforts to combat FIFA’s corruption. Switzerland on the same day also announced a parallel investigation that will focus on the bidding process for the 2018 Russia and 2022 Qatar World Cup Finals. It has long been rumored both countries won bidding to host the tournaments through bribery.
《纽约时报》引用美国司法部长洛丽塔•林奇的表述称，现在的指控“只是刚刚开始”，只是全球范围内反击国际足联腐败行动的一部分。瑞士当天也宣布要对2018年俄罗斯、2022年卡塔尔申办世界杯决赛的过程进行调查。早有传言称这两个国家是通过贿赂获得了举办比赛的资格。
Tumbling down
摔跟头
These developments could actually bring down the powerful FIFA. The organization was founded in 1904, when eight European nations agreed to cooperate in organizing international matches. In the past 40 years, says Slate’s Stefan Fatsis, FIFA has survived a string of scandals and corrupt officials. “Its offices have been raided; its business partners have stood trial; and its members have been purged for bribery, embezzlement, kickbacks, vote-buying, and other wrong-doings.”
这一系列的事件让强大的国际足联岌岌可危。国际足联创建于1904年，为了8个欧洲国家为组织国际足球赛事合作而生。。但是，过去40年中，国际足联丑闻频出，腐败官员层出不穷，正如美国《Slate》杂志的斯特凡•费特希斯所言，；他还表示“其办公室一度被抄查；商业伙伴曾出庭受过审；其员工也因受贿、挪用公款、吃回扣、贿选及其它不端行为受到过整肃。”
Political ripples
政治波澜起
There are political implications involving the US, UK and Russia stemming from the corruption probe into the soccer organization.
针对国际足联的腐败调查还在美国、英国和俄罗斯等国家引起了政治波澜。
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the US of meddling in FIFA’s affairs and hinted the charges are part of an attempt to take the 2018 World Cup away from his country.
俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔•普京谴责美国对国际足联事务的干涉，并暗示这些指控是为了剥夺俄罗斯2018年世界杯的举办权。
Putin said in televised comments that he found it “odd” that a probe was launched at the request of US officials for alleged crimes that did not happen in the US, reported US-based CBS News.
据美国哥伦比亚广播新闻报道，普京在电视上发表评论称，他感到很“奇怪”，一项根本没有发生在美国的涉嫌犯罪，竟然因为美国官员的要求而调查开来。
Ever since the scandalous arrest of the FIFA executives last week, association president Sepp Blatter has been under unprecedented pressure from top soccer executives and European politicians, including UK Prime Minister David Cameron, who are demanding he give up without a struggle and step down from his post.
自从上周国际足联高官被逮捕的丑闻发生，国际足联主席赛普•布拉特就承受了来自足球高官及欧洲政要方面的巨大压力，其中就包括英国首相大卫•卡梅伦，他要求布拉特放弃挣扎，主动辞职。
What’s next?
下一步会是什么？
After winning his fifth term at the helm of FIFA, Sepp Blatter set a defiant tone in his first press conference, blasting the US corruption probe and suggesting there was a US-backed campaign to oust him.
在第五次胜利连任国际足联主席之后的首次新闻发布会上，赛普•布拉特不甘示弱，痛击美国的腐败调查，并声称这是美国支持下的倒布运动。
According to an article on explanatory journalism website vox.com, the charges aren’t an inclusive summary of all the wrongdoings that may or may not be happening within FIFA. Rather, they’re tightly focused on just one aspect of alleged corrupt activity – in this case, the distribution of broadcast rights for soccer games.
据解释性新闻网站vox.com上一篇报道称，这些指控并不是对国际足联不端行为的全部总结。相反，它们只是仅仅盯住了其中一项涉嫌腐败的行径——也就是对赛事广播权的分配。
The website thus concluded that Sepp Blatter, who was not charged last Wednesday, may not be off the hook.
因此该网站断言，赛普•布拉特尽管没有在上周三遭到指控，但不会成为漏网之鱼。