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NEW YORK -- Soccer United Marketing, an affiliate of Major League Soccer, and IMG have won the bidding for commercial rights to next year's centennial Copa America. The announcement was made Wednesday by the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football and CONMEBOL, South America's governing body. U.S. federal prosecutors said in May that CONMEBOL reached an agreement in 2014 with Datisa for a $112.5 million deal for the 2016 Centennial Copa America. Prosecutors allege much of the money was directed toward bribes and kickbacks. The Datisa deal was terminated Oct. 21. CONCACAF and CONMEBOL said 12 responses were received to the tournament's request for proposals. While CONCACAF has promised a new era of transparency in recent years, it did not identify the other bidders, citing non-disclosure agreements. The 16-nation tournament will be played at 10 U.S. venues from June 3-26. ESP Properties, a division of WPP, and SJX Partners, a division of CSM Sports and Entertainment, will assist SUM and IMG in securing sponsors, according to the governing bodies.
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