Fifa crisis: Ethics committee requests sanctions against president Sepp Blatter and Uefa's Michel Platini
Pair are currently serving provisional suspensions from Fifa and could now face further action after sanction requests were passed on to adjudicatory chamber chairman Hans-Joachim Eckert
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Your support makes all the difference.Fifa’s ethics committee has requested sanctions to be implemented against suspended president Sepp Blatter and the head of Uefa Michel Platini after completing its investigation into their conduct.
Bother Blatter and Platini – who is also on the Fifa Executive Committee – were given provisional 90 day suspensions from Fifa on 8 October pending a full investigation. Fifa had already been shamed by a worldwide corruption scandal with prosecutors in the United States and Switzerland leading a criminal investigation.
"The investigatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee has submitted its final reports containing requests for sanctions against Joseph [Sepp] Blatter and Michel Platini to the adjudicatory chamber chaired by Hans-Joachim Eckert," said a statement.
However, the ethics committee would not divulge the details of the report or the sanctions advised due to the “presumption” of both Blatter and Platini being innocent until proven guilty.
The statement added: "For reasons linked to privacy rights and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty, the chamber will not publish details of the concluded reports and the requested sanctions against the two officials."
Blatter has been in charge of the world governing body since 1998, and in May this year he won his fifth term as president after being voted in by Fifa’s associate members ahead of Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein, only to announce his resignation four days later.
Platini had been the favourite to succeed Blatter in the next Fifa election – which will be held on 26 February – until he was suspended, and Uefa’s general secretary Gianni Infantino will run for Fifa presidency if Platini is not able to do so.
Due to the suspension, Platini is not currently able to run for presidency, with Fifa’s electoral committee stating that his registration will not be processed until his suspension if lifted, although he could have the ban lifted if the former French footballer wins his appeal after taking the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport [Cas]. Platini has already seen Fifa’s appeal committee reject his case.
Blatter still faces a criminal investigation in Switzerland over a payment of 2m Swiss francs [£1.6m] to Platini in 2011 as part of an “oral contract” for work carried out by Platini from 1998 until 2002.
Both men deny any wrongdoing.
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