Please note that ticketing in connection with the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™ was carried out under the responsibility of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee Germany (OK), to whom the ticketing rights were assigned. The ticketing process was therefore subject to the German law. FIFA was not involved in the public ticketing process for this competition.

However, and following the article published in the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet in August, FIFA decided to launch an investigation in order to find out more about the matter. This included contacts with the relevant authorities concerned. It was ascertained that the data did not include any contact details (such as address, telephone number or e-mail address) in these lists.

In addition to the investigation launched by FIFA, in September 2010, the ICO also opened an investigation into the same allegations. The ICO – the Information Commissioner’s Office - is the UK’s independent authority set up to uphold information rights in the public interest, promoting openness by public bodies and data privacy for individuals.

In a statement from 13 January 2011, the ICO said: “The ICO’s investigation has found that the ticketing database was created by a company in Germany working on behalf of the German Football Association and the FIFA World Cup Organising Committee in Germany. Subsequent enquiries were also made by the Norwegian Data Protection Authority on behalf of the ICO. The ICO has concluded that there is no evidence to suggest that any person has unlawfully obtained personal information within the UK, or that any person or organisation has breached UK data protection laws.”

Based on the information received from the relevant authorities, including the ICO, and on their stance on the subject, the matter has been closed for FIFA.