Aleksander Ceferin has been elected to succeed banned Michel Platini as president of UEFA, according to Jack Austin of the London INDEPENDENT. The 48-year-old Slovenian lawyer will complete Platini’s four-year presidential term through '19 with the former France captain "currently serving" a four-term FIFA ban over improper payments. Ceferin, "although relatively unknown," is the president of the Slovenian Football Federation and beat UEFA VP Michael van Praag to the vote in Athens. Dutchman Van Praag was publicly backed by the FA "but lost the election" to become the organization's seventh president in its 62-year history, 42-13. Ceferin: "My small and beautiful Slovenia is very proud about, it and I hope one day you will also be very proud of me. ... You can say that I am young and inexperienced but I honestly think it disrespectful for all small and medium-sized federations who, 365 days a year, have to do more with less" (INDEPENDENT, 9/14). In London, Owen Gibson wrote Ceferin vowed his "first priority will be to look again at the controversial recent deal to give more Champions League revenue to the continent’s biggest clubs." Faced with "the recurrent threat of a breakaway," the UEFA exec committee recently agreed to hand Italy, England, Spain and Germany four guaranteed slots each in the Champions League and revamped the revenue split to favor "those clubs that had previously been most successful." But Ceferin "won the support of smaller federations by complaining they were not properly consulted." He said, "We were not informed properly, I still think so. About everything else, we will have to sit down and see what is the agreement and what we can do in future about it." The new model "was devised by a three-man working group" comprising FA Vice-Chair David Gill, Portuguese Fernando Gomes and Van Praag. Senior UEFA sources said that it was "highly unlikely that the deal would be unpicked" and FA CEO Martin Glenn said that Gill had been "careful to walk a difficult tightrope." Glenn: "It will be one of Aleksander Ceferin’s first big decisions. It hasn’t happened yet so technically it can [be unpicked]." In his first press conference as president, Ceferin "insisted he would not be afraid to also revisit the financial fair play rules" that were introduced by Platini but "later watered down in the face of opposition from some of the bigger clubs." He said, "FFP should be enforced more strongly because the gap between the rich ones and the poor ones is wider and wider. We have a lot to do." The 48-year-old denied allegations that those lobbying on his behalf "had promised inducements in return for votes" and that FIFA President Gianni Infantino had backed his campaign "in contravention of the rules." Ceferin: "If you want to ask if he supported me, I hope so. But I never asked him about it. All the stories about official support and stuff like that are a simple lie" (GUARDIAN, 9/14).
'NO CHANCE': In London, Ben Rumsby reported "reversing the decision of his own executive committee would risk civil war" both within the governing body and a breakaway of the continent’s biggest clubs, who were accused by Van Praag of holding "a gun to our heads." Such a U-turn "would not be supported" by the FA. Senior UEFA insiders insisted there was "no chance" of the Champions League revamp being reversed. Age was "also at the heart of the pitch by 68-year-old Van Praag," who compared himself to the Rolling Stones, saying they were "still rocking" into their 70s. However, he "could not shake off the perception he was part of the establishment." Also "contentious" was UEFA's decision to invite Platini to "say a formal farewell at the congress following his four-year ban from football" for accepting a £1.3M ($1.72M) suspected criminal payment from Sepp Blatter. Using the platform "to vow to clear his name," Platini said, "You are going to continue this wonderful mission without me, for reasons that I won’t go into." He finished his speech by saying, "Friends of football, farewell" (TELEGRAPH, 9/14). In London, Martyn Ziegler reported Ceferin promised "bold" moves and an end to "intrigues." In his speech before the vote, Ceferin told delegates, "The wind of change is blowing through European football. It is the end of one era and the start of a new one." But he told a special congress in Athens, "I am not here to emphasize the negativities that surround us. I don’t want to live in an empire of fear where every day we wake and see another negativity surfacing. ... We are all tired of the current situation and look forward to a normalization period that will be about positive things, about friendship, about football. We should stop with politics, plots, intrigues, lack of transparency, self interest, it is football first. It is what I promise to all of you today, nothing more nothing less" (LONDON TIMES, 9/14). The BBC reported the Scottish FA said that it would "vote for the Slovenian." After the vote, FA Chair Greg Clarke said that he was "happy to work with Ceferin," and welcomed his "clear mandate" (BBC, 9/14).
PLATINI GOES DOWN SWINGING: REUTERS' Brian Homewood reported Platini "insisted he had done nothing wrong and said his conscience was clear" as he gave a farewell speech to UEFA. He said, "It's very emotional for me to be here but I'm also delighted to be here because this will be my last speech to a UEFA Congress. You are going to continue this wonderful mission without me for reasons I don't want to go into today. I have a clear conscience, I am certain not to have made any mistake and will continue to fight this in the courts" (REUTERS, 9/14).
UNLIKELY DUO: Homewood reported in a separate piece "barely one year ago," Infantino was "best known by the football public as the figure who pulled balls from pots at European club draws" while Ceferin was "a mystery outside his Slovenian homeland." Today, the two men, both lawyers and both in their mid-40s, "occupy the most powerful positions" in int'l football, filling the vacuum after a corruption scandal "swept away the old guard." Both leaders have "talked of more transparency and concentrating on developing football," although Infantino's first few months in charge have been "far from plain sailing." If Blatter "had had his way," he would have led FIFA until '19. His place "would probably have been taken" by Platini. But the status quo "was rudely broken by the corruption scandal which engulfed FIFA last year" and led to Blatter and Platini both being banned by FIFA's ethics committee (REUTERS, 9/14). Gibson reported in a separate piece the "official version" of Ceferin's "vertiginous rise" began with a series of meetings on the fringes of the FIFA Congress in Mexico City in February and then smaller gatherings of around 15 federations in eastern Europe in March "at which they sought a candidate who could represent their interests." Fearful of the power of the biggest European clubs and their "lobbying strength," and concerned the UEFA exec committee "did not always represent their interests, they swung behind Ceferin." UEFA insiders said that "his success in winning them over was partly down to dissatisfaction" with the other two candidates in the race, but "also because he caught a prevailing mood." Ceferin has "just a two-and-a-half-year mandate, owing to the untimely fall from grace of his predecessor," but insisted he would "not be afraid to fight for the interests of smaller federations." All of which should "make for an interesting dynamic" (GUARDIAN, 9/14).
