The five contenders for the FIFA throne pitched the regional confederations in Zurich on Thursday in a last-ditch plea for votes in Friday’s election. Sheikh Salman, Gianni Infantino, Prince Ali, Jerome Champagne and Tokyo Sexwale made their appeals to CONCACAF, UEFA and Oceania congresses staged at various hotels in the Swiss city where Sepp Blatter’s successor will be 26 February.
The contenders to replace Sepp Blatter as head of world football association FIFA are: Prince Ali Al Hussein, Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, Jérôme Champagne, Gianni Infantino and Tokyo Sexwale. Liberian FA president Musa Bility was dropped from the field after failing the check, while suspended UEFA boss Michel Platini will only be considered if he successfully appeals his 90-day ban. He would then be subject to an integrity check.
Days before an emergency FIFA ExCo meeting, Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein has submitted his candidacy for the presidency vowing to restore the governing body’s battered reputation. In compliance with electoral regulations, the Jordanian has the backing of five national associations, although he didn’t name them.
Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan wastes no time in slamming Michel Platini as he announces his bid to succeed Sepp Blatter as head of world football's governing body. After hinting at a second run for the FIFA presidency at the Soccerex Global Convention in Manchester on Monday, the Jordanian officially launched his campaign on Wednesday in Amman.
With FIFA reeling from the most damaging corruption crisis in its 111-year history, (14 FIFA officials and marketing executives were indicted by US justice authorities in May over a $150 million bribery scandal), Sepp Blatter denied that FIFA was corrupt to the core.
Argentine football legend Diego Maradona has thrown his hat into the ring for the FIFA presidency, according to reports. Reuters quoted Uruguayan journalist and author Victor Hugo Morales saying that Maradona, 54, had revealed his plan on Sunday.
Sepp Blatter, who four days ago was re-elected for a fifth four-year term as president of FIFA, the world football's governing body announced on Tuesday in Zurich that he would resign his position and lay down his mandate at an extraordinary elective congress to be held later in the year.
Richard Weber, the United States Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) leader of criminal investigations, told The New York Times he was fairly confident that there would be another round of indictments, following on the 14 FIFA officials accused of racketeering and accepting $150 million in bribes to rig marketing contracts and the selection of the host country for the 2010 World Cup.
Sepp Blatter was re-elected president of FIFA for a fifth term on Friday after the only other candidate conceded defeat after a first round of voting in an election overshadowed by allegations of corruption in world soccer. Blatter's victory came despite demands that he quit in the face of a major bribery scandal being investigated by US, Swiss and other law enforcement agencies.
Russian president Vladimir Putin waded into the FIFA scandal by accusing the United States of interfering in FIFA affairs after the US Justice Department ordered Swiss police to arrest seven senior FIFA officials on Wednesday. They were among nine current and former FIFA officials indicted.