$50,000 from the Bank of Bermuda to help finance a secret out-of-court settlement of sacked Director of Coaching Burkhard Ziese in January, The Royal Gazette has learned.

Ziese pocketed $51,752 and the BFA was also forced to pay an extra $27,462 in legal and professional fees to cover the costs of the year-long row with the German coach.

The payments contributed to a whopping deficit of $129,275 for the BFA's 1995-1996 season.

The $50,000 loan is interest free and is repayable in five equal installments each year for five years, ending in January, 2002.

Club affiliates were informed of the settlement at the BFA's annual general meeting last week.

But the details of the loan contained in the BFA's annual report was the first official confirmation of the heavy financial burden taken on by the association, which was plunged into turmoil after the arrests on drug charges of seven Bermuda under 23 players in Miami in December, 1994.

The BFA report made it clear the association was anxious to put the controversy behind it, stating only that "the matter had been resolved in a way that was acceptable to both parties''.

"We don't view it as having been a secret, it was just an out-of-court settlement that happens all of the time,'' new BFA president Neville Tyrrell said yesterday. "In order to honour it we did have discussions with the bank who were prepared to give us a long-term loan and we are happy for that. It was all part of the bank's endeavour to help us get back on our feet and were are indeed grateful to them.

"The new executive committee feel that all of that is well in the past and were are looking ahead to the future with optimism. Yes, we have to climb out of a financial hole and we are committed to getting the association back in the black as soon as possible.'' Ziese was hired by the BFA in December, 1993, and his three-year contract was set to expire on December 31, 1996. He was told in January, 1995, that his contract was terminated -- one month after the arrests of the seven Bermuda under-23 players as they returned from the Pan-Am Games qualifying tournament in Jamaica just before Christmas.

He was one of the people responsible for blowing the whistle on the drug problem within soccer, which was exposed later in a report following the scandal.

Since then the BFA's finances have been strained in dealing with the settlement, combined with ongoing international commitments such as the Pan Am Games and related tours.

Soccer chiefs had asked whether Government would help pay the settlement for Ziese, but were told by Youth and Sport Minister Tim Smith that no government cash was available.

Later, due to an acute financial shortage, another approach was made to Government for funding of Bermuda's entry to the World Cup to the tune of $300,000, but this too was turned down.

By then it was clear that the BFA's troubles were severe and the business sector, which had sponsored many projects, was no longer keen to do business with them until the sport cleaned up.

The BFA's situation worsened when a leadership crises arose with former president Richard Thompson eventually being asked to resign by the committee headed by Sir John Sharpe to investigate the problems in soccer. Thompson and the entire executive committee all resigned at the request of the report.

With a new slate of officers headed by Tyrrell, the BFA appears to be on a sound footing once again. Sponsors are already showing their confidence by giving cash to assist various programmes once again.

Recently, Centre Re Holdings and the Bank of Bermuda headed a sponsorship campaign that saw more than $80,000 being raised to finance the International Youth tournament.