The two FIFA ethics chiefs responsible for banning some of the sport’s most prominent figures following a corruption scandal face an uncertain future and may not have their mandates renewed, sources with knowledge of the matter have told Reuters.

Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, his right-hand man Jerome Valcke and former European soccer boss Michel Platini are among dozens who have been banned by the ethics committee in the last four years.

The scandal has also led to the indictment of several dozen soccer officials, mainly from Central and South America, in the United States. Blatter, Valcke and Platini, who have denied any wrongdoing, were not among them.

The sources said that a change of personnel could lead to a two-year delay in ongoing investigations as the new incumbents would have to familiarise themselves with both the ethics committee set up and the cases themselves.

The mandates of Cornel Borbely, a Swiss attorney who heads the investigatory division of the ethics committee, and Hans-Joachim Eckert, a German judge who heads the adjudicatory chamber, expire in May.

The sources told Reuters that neither have so far been invited to the next FIFA Congress on May 11 in Bahrain, where their mandates would be extended for another four years.

According to the FIFA statutes, the 37-member FIFA Council has responsibility for proposing candidates for the two roles and the final decision is made at the Congress by representatives of the 211 national federations.

FIFA would not comment directly on whether Borbely and Eckert would be nominated for reappointment.

“In line with our good governance processes, a consultation process has started and the confederations have been asked to provide candidates,” it said.

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