Presidential hopeful Prince Ali demands FIFA ‘join 21st century’

Platini hits out at investigators

TOKYO, Dec 19, (AFP): FIFA presidential hopeful Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein has promised to rid the crisis-hit organisation of corruption and “bring it into the 21st century”.

Jordan’s football chief told AFP on Saturday that he was confident of being elected in February’s vote after losing to Sepp Blatter in May’s ballot.

“I trust in the 209 national associations to make the right decision this time,” Prince Ali said in an interview. “I come from a national association and a lot of us are tired of what has been happening.

“There is a real desire to move on. I want to reverse the pyramid and turn FIFA into a service organisation. It’s time to bring it into the 21st century.”

Prince Ali refused to be drawn on corruption charges against Blatter and the world body’s vice-president Michel Platini — both currently suspended from office and who potentially face life bans over a $2 million payment Blatter made to Platini in 2011.

“That’s a process that is taking place and has to do with the ethics committee,” said Prince Ali, who left the executive committee after losing his challenge to Blatter’s re-election by 133-73 votes. “It’s going to take time to fix the reputation of FIFA and it will take time to change the culture.”

A FIFA ethics court verdict on Blatter and Platini is expected on Monday, and several high-profile arrests since Swiss police raided the Zurich hotel where FIFA delegates were staying two days before May’s election have left the organisation fighting for its survival, according to Prince Ali.

“I don’t think people were very surprised that things are continuing to happen in this direction,” he said, referring to the arrests which triggered the worst crisis in FIFA’s 111-year history. “If we don’t get it right this time then the concern is that things will continue.

“It’s critical to have an election and to go ahead with it on time,” added Prince Ali, who has visited around 80 countries this year canvassing votes. “We’ve lost the year already to be honest.”

launched a virulent assault on FIFA’s ethics watchdog in a statement read out at the football world body’s tribunal which is deciding whether he is guilty of corruption.

“I am already judged, I am already condemned,” the 60 year-old suspended FIFA vice president and UEFA leader said in the statement which was released on Saturday after being read out by his lawyer at Friday’s hearing in Zurich.

The tribunal is to release its verdict on Monday and FIFA’s ethics investigators have called for Platini to face a life ban.

Platini however attacked an “anthology of indiscretions, rumours, confidences leaked to the press by anonymous and malevolent sources from within FIFA that you have done nothing to silence,” in the statement to the judges.

The statement highlighted a media interview given by head of FIFA’s audit committee, in October when he gave details of a two million Swiss franc ($2 million/1.8 million euro) payment approved by FIFA president

to Platini in 2011. The payment is the cause of the FIFA investigation and Scala highlighted how there was no contract and how the sum did not appear in FIFA accounts.

Blatter and Platini, both serving 90-day suspensions, deny any wrongdoing. But FIFA’s ethics commission has called for a life ban for Platini.

Blatter, 79, who appeared before the tribunal on Thursday, also faces a long ban.

Platini said the case prepared by FIFA prosecutor Vanessa Allard is “loaded” and declared: “I no longer have any trust in FIFA’s disciplinary bodies.”

Switzerland will extradite former FIFA vice president to his native Uruguay instead of the United States after his arrest in the corruption scandal rocking world football, a prosecutor said Friday.

“It’s official: Swiss authorities have agreed to Eugenio Figueredo’s extradition to Uruguay,” said lead prosecutor on the Uruguayan case.

“Swiss authorities will have until December 30 to complete the extradition.”

Figueredo, the former president of South American confederation CONMEBOL, was one of seven top football officials arrested in a raid on a Zurich luxury hotel in May, a raid that kicked off an unprecedented crisis at FIFA.

He has been indicted in the United States on charges of soliciting multi-million-dollar bribes from sports marketing firms.