FIFA crisis grows, Tsipras defiant and alma mating

The daily briefing “FirstFT” from the Financial Times.

Chuck Blazer, the former Fifa official turned government witness, took bribes over a period of almost 20 years to sway the selection of two World Cups and five regional tournaments, according to court documents unsealed on Wednesday, deepening the crisis engulfing Fifa.

The partly redacted 40-page transcript of Mr Blazer’s guilty plea before a US judge in 2013 was released after news organisations petitioned the court to make it public. The plea had taken place in secret and his role as a US informant only became public last week. (FT, BBC)

In the news

Tsipras defiant Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras dismissed a new rescue plan hammered out by lenders that demands difficult economic reforms in return for access to EUR7.2bn of desperately needed aid. But for all the posturing, several EU negotiators were expressing growing confidence that a deal was within reach as Greece approaches a Friday deadline when it must make a EUR300m loan repayment to the International Monetary Fund. (FT)

Fighting in Ukraine Dozens of people were reportedly killed or injured around the separatist-held city of Donetsk on Wednesday, in one of the bloodiest battles between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed militias since a fragile ceasefire began in February. In a rare public appearance in Moscow, Igor Girkin, the former military commander of the rebels, said the region was witnessing a level of fighting not seen since the start of the year. (FT)

Dish eyes T-Mobile USA The Wall Street Journal reports that Dish Network is in talks with T-Mobile USA, the mobile unit controlled by Deutsche Telekom. A deal would combine the country’s second-largest satellite TV operator with its fourth-largest wireless carrier.

OECD and George Osborne Pressure mounted on the UK chancellor to ease back on thepace of austerity when the OECD urged him to smooth the path of cuts to avoid putting economic recovery in peril. (FT)

Anthrax scare More than 50 labs in 17 US states have been mailed samples of live anthrax, Pentagon officials have revealed. Staff members at some of the labs have been treated for anthrax exposure as a precaution but no one has fallen ill and the Pentagon has maintained there is no risk to the general public. (BBC)

It’s a big day for

Hong Kong, where the 26th anniversary of the student-led Tiananmen Square protests in mainland China will be commemorated by a vigil in Victoria Park. (Reuters)

Bank of England The BoE will issue a rate decision; it is expected to maintain the current benchmark interest rate of 0.5 per cent.

Food for thought

The young ones With the cost of college education in the US at a record high, some students are crossing the Atlantic to study at top institutions in Germany where they can be educated for free – and gain international experience, too. (BBC)

Alma mating A software engineer at Google has made a Tinder-esque dating app whose membership comprises mainly Princeton students and graduates. The Princeton alumnus did not install a feature on the app that verified whether users went to Princeton before they joined, but he says he hasn’t heard of anyone else signing up. (Bloomberg)

Les grandes vacances Now June is here office workers in France are leaving town for several weeks to relax: two months of holiday a year are standard. Yet productivity among French workers is still among the highest in Europe and exceeds levels in Germany and the UK, according to official data. (FT)

Difficult questions More than 400 people remain unaccounted for after a cruise shipcapsized on China’s Yangtze river on Monday, yet three days on it is still unclear what caused the tragedy. All we know is that the vessel capsized fast. (BBC)

Video of the Day

Russia and Qatar have dismissed speculation that they could lose the right to host the football World Cup – but after Sepp Blatter’s resignation, the bids could be re-examined. Gideon Rachman talks to Daniel Garrahan about whether the two tournaments are in danger of not happening.

This article is published in collaboration with The Financial Times. Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum.

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Author: FirstFT is the Financial Times’ editors curated free daily email of the top global stories from the FT and the best of the rest of the web.

Image: A referee uses vanishing spray to mark the boundary of the ball during a free kick. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth.