FIFA wins World Cup insurance case

FIFA is to receive compensation from AXA after a German court ruled the insurance company's cancellation of its 2002 World Cup policy was unlawful, world soccer's governing body said on Monday.

FIFA began legal action against France's largest insurer after it terminated its 1.4 billion Swiss franc ($1.12 billion) policy for the World Cup in South Korea and Japan following the September 11 attacks on the United States in 2001.

"FIFA is happy with this judgment as it won its point through its declaratory action completely. In other words, it won the case itself," FIFA president Sepp Blatter said in a statement.

"The unilateral and, according to the court pronouncement, unlawful termination of insurance by AXA had far-reaching

The court ruled that AXA, as leader of a consortium of 63 insurance companies, was liable to pay FIFA compensation amounting to its own participation quota of more than 20 percent.

But it added that AXA would not be solely liable to pay the compensation and FIFA would have to look at what steps should be taken for action against the other insurers.

FIFA sealed a new deal for its World Cup coverage with the American insurance firm National Indemnity Company.