GENEVA –

A Swiss court denied a request by a FIFA official arrested in Zurich last month to be released pending his extradition to the U.S. because he is considered a flight risk.

The FIFA official, who wasn't identified, has no close ties to Switzerland and is more than capable of traveling long distances to flee, the Federal Penal Tribunal said in a statement Friday. While the Swiss tribunal didn't name the official, it referenced his Uruguayan citizenship and the only Uruguayan named in the U.S. indictment was Eugenio Figueredo.

Swiss police arrested seven soccer executives in dawn raids at Zurich hotels last month after U.S. warrants were issued on charges of racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering. The arrests and allegations of corruption in international soccer prompted FIFA president Sepp Blatter to announce plans to step down days later.

All seven men being held at "multiple establishments" in and around Zurich are contesting their extradition in a process that Swiss justice officials say will probably take months.

The tribunal added that there is no medical reason why the man shouldn't remain in detention. Figueredo is 83.

"Measures such as money bail, electronic monitoring, etc. would not adequately reduce the risk of flight," the court said.

Figueredo, a FIFA vice-president who sits on the soccer body's executive committee, was replaced as the head of South American soccer in March. He was an executive of the South American soccer confederation (CONMEBOL) for more than 20 years.

The case stands in contrast with that of film director Roman Polanski, who was released under house arrest in Switzerland in 2009 as he successfully fought extradition on decades-old sexual assault charges in the U.S.

"There must be evidence to support the fact he is a flight risk," said Kyle Phillips, a criminal lawyer with Slater & Gordon. "The fact he is a resident of Uruguay and does not appear to have ties to Switzerland is quite a big factor."