Eduardo Li

Eduardo Li Sánchez (Chinese: 爱德华多·李·桑切斯; pinyin: Àidéhuáduō·lǐ·sāngqièsī, born 11 November 1958) is a Costa Rican football administrator, FIFA executive committee member-elect, CONCACAF executive committee member, and former Costa Rican Football Federation (FEDEFUT) president. He co-founded Puntarenas F.C. with Adrián Castro Velásquez in June 2004. His paternal Chinese grandfather immigrated to Costa Rica in 1920.^[2]

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Li and the second or maternal family name is Sánchez.

Eduardo Li
Born	Eduardo Li Sánchez (1958-11-11) 11 November 1958 (age 65)[1] Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Li is involved in the 2015 FIFA corruption case, and was arrested in May 2015 in Switzerland to face corruption charges in the US.^[3] Li was banned by FIFA Ethics Committee.^[4]

On 18 December 2015, he was extradited to the United States.^[5]

In October 2016 Li pleaded guilty to three charges in the Federal Courthouse in Brooklyn, New York. He admitted to have accepted more than $500,000 in bribes from different companies for television rights to Costa Rican football games for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Li was also charged with money laundering and wire fraud.^[6][7]

In 2017 the FIFA suspended him for life.^[8][9]

References

1. "Executive Committee". CONCACAF. Archived from the original on 20 January 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
2. "FIFA-Gate: Costa Rica's Eduardo Li allegedly received 6-figure bribe, says US indictment". The Tico Times.
3. Apuzzo, Matt; Schmidt, Michael S.; Rashbaum, William K.; Borden, Sam. "FIFA Officials Arrested on Corruption Charges; Blatter Isn't Among Them". New York Times. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
4. Jauregui, Andres (27 May 2015). "FIFA Officials Banned From Football-Related Activities In Wake Of Scandal". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
5. "Eduardo Li se declara inocente pero seguirá detenido en Estados Unidos". nacion.com. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
6. "Eduardo Li pleads guilty in FIFA fraud case". The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate. 7 October 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
7. Ruiz, Rebecca R. (7 October 2016). "Costa Rican Soccer Official Pleads Guilty in FIFA Corruption Case". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
8. "FIFA suspends Eduardo Li for life -". The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate. 21 April 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
9. "FIFA life ban for Li in bribery case". ESPN.com. 21 April 2017. Retrieved 17 November 2022.