Llona set to join Platini on ban list
eurOPean football has been thrown into more chaos with its second-most powerful official, Spanish football chief angel Maria Villar llona, set to join ueFa president Michel Platini on the banned list.
Villar llona, who chaired the ueFa summit in nyon last week because of Platini’s 90-day suspension, could be the next major figure to face judgment. it was announced yesterday that his case has been passed to the ethics adjudicatory chamber for a verdict — along with that of german great Franz Beckenbauer.
and with europe potentially having to turn to a temporary third in line — Marios left-karitis of Cyprus — to preside over ueFa business, it will be more difficult for the confederation to avoid being dragged fully into the FiFa scandal.
The ethics investigatory chamber also confirmed that suspended trio Sepp Blatter, Jerome Valcke and Platini are being probed — the deposed FiFa and ueFa presidents over that murky £1.35million consultancy cheque and former FiFa secretary-general Valcke over misuse of expenses.
The full football team of 11 FiFa figures being studied by their ethics committee is completed by Worawi Makudi, Jeffrey Webb, ricardo Teixeira, amos adamu, eugenio Figueredo and nicolas leoz.
THE widespread belief that the five-strong make-up of the review panel into England’s Rugby World Cup shambles has the look of a whitewash is emphasised by Ian Metcalfe being a Stuart Lancaster fan — as well as RFU chief executive Ian Ritchie awarding Lancaster (right) his six-year contract and Sir Ian McGeechan publicly supporting Lancaster and his assistant coaches. lOrD COe, president of the iaaF, has yet to complete the re- structuring of his business affairs that would allow him to cease being a nike ambassador — which doesn’t sit well with him leading the world track and field organisation. So it was good timing that he had to leave his chairing of the British Olympic association summit held at the adidas headquarters in Stockport this week before the Team gB sponsors made their presentation.
Meanwhile, David Sparkes, chief executive of British Swimming, is one of the few sports administrators prepared to say what he thinks. in their wisdom, national Olympic committee members have voted him off the BOa board.
EUROPE are still looking for a candidate to contest the FIFA presidency following Michel Platini’s suspension. Time is running out before Monday’s deadline and no obvious choice is emerging from the discussions around the FIFA emergency ExCo meeting this week. The pity is that England’s FIFA and UEFA ExCo representative David Gill has no wish to be considered, despite having all the credentials and being one of the few around the Zurich ExCo table untainted by scandal.