The FA reaffirmed its support for UEFA President Michel Platini on Wednesday night, insisting that he would be an "excellent" choice to succeed Sepp Blatter as FIFA President, "despite admitting its concern over the investigation" into the £1.35M payment the Frenchman received from Blatter in '11, according to Oliver Kay of the LONDON TIMES. The matter has "raised doubts over whether Platini will be able to stand" for the FIFA presidency and whether he would retain the support of his backers but the FA stated that, "despite the unanswered questions, it remains supportive of the 60-year-old." An FA statement said, "In July, the FA board decided unanimously to support Michel Platini if he intended to stand for the presidency of Fifa. We did so because we thought he was an excellent president of Uefa and could bring those same leadership qualities to Fifa. We are still of that view. However, events of recent days have raised a number of issues which do need to be fully examined" (LONDON TIMES, 10/1).
PROCEEDING WITH CAUTION: REUTERS' Simon Evans reported key nations backing Platini as the next FIFA president are adopting a "more cautious approach to his bid" while Swiss authorities investigating graft at FIFA look into a $2M payment it made to him. A number of federations "say they might review support for Platini depending on results of an inquiry into the payment." While "not dropping their backing" for Platini, the English, German and Italian federations have expressed concerns over the allegations while the Swedish FA said that the case "could interfere" with its support. The German Football Federation (DFB) had been "one of the first federations" to throw its weight behind Platini in July. DFB President Wolfgang Niersbach said, "Part of a serious administration is to look carefully at what it is about and whether there is indeed misconduct." In July, Italian Football Federation (FIGC) President Carlo Tavecchio said that Platini "would be the right person to lead FIFA reform." But speaking on Italian radio this week, Tavecchio said that it was "too soon to comment on the specifics of this case involving Platini," but that the Italians were waiting to see how judicial proceedings developed. Swedish FA Chair Karl-Erik Nilsson said, "At the moment we have no other opinion than support for Platini. What has happened can obviously interfere with that, but we in the SvFF have confidence in Platini" (REUTERS, 9/30). The PA reported Bundesliga President Reinhard Rauball said that Platini's attempts to explain his payment from FIFA are "just not enough." Rauball: "What Platini has told us so far is just not enough. Michel Platini has to give a credible explanation to the public and football fans -- and that is the emphasis: credible" (PA, 10/1).
LEAVE OF ABSENCE: REUTERS' Simon Evens wrote Platini "lost the services of one of his key advisers." UEFA said on Thursday that "Kevin Lamour, head of the president's office was taking a leave of absence."A UEFA spokesperson said Lamour's decision was "completely" unrelated to the Swiss investigation. The spokesperson said, "It had been agreed several months ago that Kevin would take a leave of absence at the end of September after the Executive Committee meeting in Malta." While Lamour's departure "is unconnected to the investigation and the scrutiny of Platini, it leaves the Frenchman without a trusted advisor at a difficult time" (REUTERS, 10/1).
MAKING A DEAL: ESPN reported former Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) President José Maria Marin will pay $10M to be "transferred and kept under house arrest in his Manhattan apartment as he awaits a ruling for his alleged part in FIFA's corruption and bribery scandal." According to an Estado de S. Paulo report, Marin has "engineered a deal with U.S. officials that will see him placed on house arrest at his Trump Tower dwelling, with the hefty payment acting as bail." Per the terms of the agreement, "the paper goes on to say Marin would have a restricted radius from which he could travel from his Central Park residence, with a return to Brazil improbable" (ESPN, 10/1).
