Fifa sack general secretary Jerome Valcke

Jerome Valcke has been sacked by Fifa as secretary general of the world governing body after ethics charges were brought against him over World Cup ticket sales.

The Frenchman has been suspended since September 17th but a meeting of Fifa’s emergency committee has now decided to dismiss him from the organisation.

A Fifa statement said: “The Fifa emergency committee decided to dismiss Jerome Valcke from the position of Fifa secretary general with immediate effect. Jerome Valcke is therefore no longer the secretary general of Fifa.

“The employment relationship between Fifa and Jerome Valcke has also been terminated.

"The duties of the secretary general will continue to be assumed by the acting secretary general, Dr Markus Kattner. "

Valcke is facing a nine-year ban from Fifa after an ethics investigation into several alleged offences including being connected to black market sales of World Cup tickets.

Fifa’s investigatory chamber finished its probe last week and has recommended a nine-year ban and a fine of 100,000 Swiss francs (€91,709) on charges including conflicts of interest and offering and accepting gifts and other benefits.

Valcke was suspended after allegations were made claiming he planned to benefit from black market World Cup ticket sales. He has denied any wrongdoing, saying his conduct had always been “exemplary”.

It is the second time Valcke has been sacked by Fifa — he was dismissed in December 2006 as marketing director after an American judge said he had lied repeatedly during Fifa’s botched sponsorship negotiations with rival card giants MasterCard and Visa.

Less than eight months later, however, he was back in Fifa as second in command to president Sepp Blatter, who himself has been banned for eight years by the ethics committee.