Spanish federation chief detained

The president of the Spanish Football Federation, Angel Maria Villar, was detained by police Tuesday as part of a corruption probe, a judicial source said.

Villar, 67, a former Spanish international footballer, was being held on suspicion of abusing his position to embezzle funds from the federation, among other charges, the source said.

Villar's son Gorka and another federation official were also detained in the probe which notably focuses on allegations of skimming profits from international matches, the source told AFP.

Spain's political and financial crimes court said it is directing the probe into allegations of "collusion, fraud, embezzlement and presumed forgery."

Police who carried out raids on the federation headquarters and other locations related to the probe said that Villar is suspected of organising international football matches as part of a scheme to embezzle profits for the benefit of his son.

Inigo Mendez de Vigo, a spokesman for the Spanish government, told public television in response to the Villar arrest that "no-one is untouchable and everyone must obey the law."