Football
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Beckenbauer helps out with FIFA probe

#INSERT type:image caption:Franz Beckenbauer was a member of the FIFA executive. END#

Franz Beckenbauer has fully cooperated with the FIFA ethics committee and answered all its questions about his part in the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

Last week, Beckenbauer, a World Cup-winning player and manager with West Germany, was provisionally banned by FIFA from taking part in any football-related activity at any level for 90 days. The former Bayern Munich player had been punished for failing to cooperate with an investigation into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids, which were won by Russia and Qatar respectively.

Beckenbauer claimed he had nothing to hide, and explained that he was not able to fully understand the questions he received in legal English -- his request for an interview in German was declined by the committee.

World football's governing body, however, announced that Beckenbauer -- a member of the FIFA executive at the time of the voting process for the World Cups -- received the questions in both English and German.

On Wednesday, though, Beckenbauer's management said on Twitter that their client had now answered the ethics committee's questions "by mail and fax."

Meanwhile, Bayern president Karl Hopfner has hit out at FIFA in an interview with Bild, calling Beckenbauer's ban "unacceptable."

While no longer having a role with FIFA, Beckenbauer is Bayern's honorary president and was recently installed as the club's international brand ambassador.

"Those proceeding against a person like Franz Beckenbauer, who over the years has been honoured with praise and medals, is just unacceptable," Hopfner said. "To impose the maximum penalty without any advance notice, from out of nowhere, is out of all reason. We also don't share the legal conception as Beckenbauer is no longer part of the FIFA executive.

"We at FC Bayern can't accept the ban against Franz Beckenbauer, who has been penalised without proven fault. It's a fact that Franz Beckenbauer, who has now answered the questions, has to be able to fulfill all tasks. That would be the logical consequence.

"We, FC Bayern, refuse to accept the ban and are fully behind Franz Beckenbauer. He is and will remain our honorary president -- no ifs and buts."

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