Televisa Chairman Azcarraga Steps Down Amid FIFA Bribery Investigation

Emilio Azcarraga is stepping down as executive chairman of grupo Televisa SAB during a US Justice Department investigation into the Mexican Media conglomerate’s dealings in international soccer. 

Azcarraga’s resignation is effective straight away and Televisa continues to cooperate with the probe, according to a filing Thursday. The company disclosed results in a material effect on its finances. 

Televisa, a major shareholder in Mexico’s largest broadcaster and the biggest US Spanish-language TV network, was incriminated in a US corruption trial in 2017. An observer claimed one of its units bribed FIFA officials to secure rights to World Cup matches.

The FIFA probe has brought severe penalties against other companies and individuals. Jose Hawilla, whose marketing firm Traffic Group helped broker broadcasting agreements for Latin America’s biggest soccer tournaments, agreed in 2015 to hand over $151 million and sell his business after detailing to US prosecutors how he was at the center of more than $ 100 million in bribes. He died in 2018.

Alejandro Burzaco, a sports market executive who admitted to paying tens of millions of dollars in bribes to Latin American soccer officials, agreed in 2023 to hand over more than $21.69 million as part of his guilty plea. The investigation also led to the downfall of executives at Fox Sports and FIFA. 

 Azcarraga, 56, was chief executive officer at televisa until 2017, when he conceded the title to two other executives, staying on as chairman. In addition to the Mexican broadcast business founded by Azcarraga’s grandfather, the media company’s holdings include the nation’s biggest cable and satellite TV providers. 

A 2021 deal with US Spanish-language broadcaster Univision Holdings Inc. to combine programming assets sparked a further review of Televisa’s business structure, leading to a spinoff of its soccer team America and other assets. Azcarraga is CEO of that spinoff, called Ollamani SAB. Calls weren’t answered by the company on Thursday. 

Also on Thursday reported a 6.4 % reduction in the third quarter income from a year as high-speed internet signups failed to make up for disconnections of cable and satellite TV subscribers. The company could agree to replace Azcarraga, who remains a major shareholder.

The stock had a downfall to 14% this year at Thursday’s close, before Azcarraga’s resignation was reported, compared with a  9.7% drop in Mexico’s benchmark stock index.