As FIFA officials meet in Zurich to determine the date for the next presidential election, one man has emerged as the overwhelming favorite to take over from Sepp Blatter.
His good friend, Michel Platini.
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Platini, 60, is a long-term advocate of Blatter but the former French national team captain and current President of UEFA did urge Blatter to stand down before the last presidential election on May 27, just days after soccer’s world governing body was rocked by a huge corruption scandal.
Officials have decided that a presidential vote will take place in Feb. 26 2016 to decide who will replace Blatter, after the 17-year leader of FIFA resigned last month amid huge amounts of pressure from influential figures across the game, corporate sponsors and increased scrutiny by both the Swiss authorities and the U.S. Department of Justice.
As for Platini, it is believed he has been asked to run in the presidential election by the vast majority of FIFA’s associations around the globe but he has not yet decided whether or not he wants to throw his hat into the ring. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) are now said to be backing Platini, joining UEFA, CONCACAF and CONMEBOL as advocates for him to turn around the fortunes of the troubled organization.
With overwhelming support from the get-go, Platini will be the favorite but others who will run to become Blatter’s successor include Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan, who came second to Blatter in the most-recent presidential election, plus Jerome Champagne will also likely be a credible candidate and former players Luis Figo and Diego Maradona may be involved.