It might get complicated for the banks, after all. FIFA, world soccer's governing body and organiser of the World Cup, routed Mexico's portion of the $US1.5 million it sent to each team to prepare for the tournament in euros via banks unconnected with the US financial system. Mexican national soccer team captain Rafael Marquez, left, with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto during a ceremony to present the national flag to the team before the 2018 World Cup, at Los Pinos presidential residence, in Mexico City, last month. Credit:AP Corporate sponsors, particularly US ones, that pay to have their brand names splayed all over the World Cup and on its stars are running as far from Marquez as possible. Marquez, who has been on the Treasury blacklist since August and several businesses connected to him, are accused of acting as fronts and holding assets for Raul Flores Hernandez, who is suspected of leading a drug trafficking organisation.

Though he has not been criminally charged, Marquez's financial assets in the US, as well as his Mexican assets with ties to the US financial network, were frozen. He has vehemently denied any link to drug traffickers and has hired a team of lawyers to challenge his placement on the list and assuage fretful sponsors. One of his lawyers, Jose Luis Nassar, who has acted as a spokesman, has said, "We are in a frank phase of collaboration [with US officials to resolve the matter]." But sponsors are treating the superstar like kryptonite just the same. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video The Mexican soccer federation and FIFA have known about Marquez's situation for months but allowed him to be named for the team and come to the tournament.

Both bodies, in fact, have worked together to navigate his course at the tournament in a way that will avoid any trouble from the Treasury Department, according to several people involved in the planning who spoke on condition of anonymity. Loading "FIFA is aware of the situation concerning the player Rafael Marquez and we are in regular contact with the Mexican Football Association," the governing body said in a statement. The Mexican federation, in its own statement, acknowledged that it has had to make accommodations for Marquez. "We take seriously the actions of the US Treasury Department, and we have structured our World Cup operations so as not to violate US sanctions laws," said the federation, which has significant business interests in the US, notably with its exclusive commercial rights partner, Soccer United Marketing.

Soccer United Marketing declined to comment. Having Marquez along in Russia may complicate Mexico's World Cup bid, but his presence has already been a positive for the team. As a late substitute to help close out Mexico's upset win over Germany on Sunday, Marquez became only the third player to appear in a fifth World Cup. The achievement might have been cause for celebration and promotions had it come under different circumstances. Loading After the game, broadcasters did not rush Marquez for an on-field interview. That would have meant placing him in front of a clear plastic board covered in sponsor logos, including four major US brands: Visa, Coca-Cola, Budweiser and McDonald's.

FIFA initially, and erroneously, told broadcasters they could not even interview Marquez, before revising that advice to say that they could, provided they did so without displaying sponsor logos. FIFA also has taken measures to pre-empt contact between Marquez and any of its employees who are US citizens. For instance, if Marquez appears at a news conference that FIFA arranges, the moderator should not be an American. Even before the World Cup, care had to be taken. Marquez had stopped playing for his club team, Atlas, which is based in Guadalajara, and had been left off the national team roster for months while his lawyers worked on his case. The Mexican federation only named him to its World Cup team as FIFA's deadline for rosters loomed. He missed a warm-up match against Wales at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, apparently because he is forbidden to enter the US. And at training camps before the tournament, and in Russia, Marquez's jersey is plain with no sponsor logos.

Flights, too, have been carefully arranged, since Marquez is not allowed to travel on a US-owned carrier. Legal experts not involved in the case said some of what FIFA and the federation have done may be out of an abundance of caution, as the Treasury rules are subject to wide interpretation and it would not be worth the risk to violate them. Loading "The penalties are very severe for this type of thing," said Oliver Krischik, a lawyer at GKG Law who focuses on Treasury sanctions. Companies that violate the regulations, even unintentionally, face fines up to nearly $US1.5 million per violation, while wilful breaches can lead to a penalty of up to $US10 million and a maximum of 30 years in jail for individuals who knowingly break the rules. Krischik described the regulations as "grey".

The restrictions are less onerous on foreign-based businesses. For example, Marquez wears the same adidas apparel as his teammates, and his personal sponsor, Puma, based in the same German village as adidas, took to social media to congratulate Marquez on his record-equalling feat. It was a gesture that many other brands, including Citibanamex and Coca-Cola, judiciously avoided. Adidas and Puma declined to comment. "In all of our business activities, we take care to ensure we comply with all applicable laws, including US sanctions laws," Coca-Cola said in a statement. Despite his legal problems, Marquez remains hugely popular in Mexico, a fact not lost on FIFA or Anheuser-Busch InBev, whose Budweiser brand sponsors the man-of-the-match award at the World Cup, an accolade that is awarded based on a public vote. Associating the prize with Marquez - he secured one at the last World Cup in Brazil - while he remains on the Treasury Department list would almost certainly be in violation of US law. So a fudge of a kind is being discussed, whereby he would not be presented with the Bud-branded trophy, according to people familiar with the discussions. Anheuser-Busch InBev, which is also connected to the Mexican team through its Estrella Jalisco brand, referred questions about Marquez and the award to FIFA.