The Football Association has backed Michel Platini’s bid to replace Sepp Blatter as Fifa president but warned that world football’s governing body must be “fundamentally changed” following the recent corruption scandal.
Platini, having received assurances he is likely to win the vote for the Fifa presidency next February, announced his candidacy in a letter sent to the organisation’s 209 member associations on Wednesday. The Uefa president has promised to transform Fifa’s disgraced reputation but within hours of launching the bid, he was accused by Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, a potential rival in the election, of being tainted by association with the Blatter era.
The FA, however, has pledged to support Platini’s attempt to reform Fifa despite not having seen a manifesto from the former France midfielder.
Greg Dyke, the FA chairman, said: “We support Michel Platini’s candidacy. We have a good relationship with him and hope he can gain the necessary global backing to lead a new Fifa during the most difficult period in its history.
"We understand there will be a number of candidates, which should result in a strong and healthy debate. However, we should not underestimate how challenging it will be for anyone to lead an organisation that has been so tainted. The whole structure of Fifa must be reviewed and fundamentally changed.
"With the FA vice-chairman David Gill newly appointed to the Fifa executive committee and the level of worldwide scrutiny on the reform process, the opportunity is there to bring about positive change. While we have yet to see Mr Platini’s manifesto, we believe he will fully support an ongoing reform process."
Jordan’s Prince Ali issued an outspoken attack on Platini’s credentials as a reformer, the Uefa president having voted to award the 2022 World Cup to Qatar – to the consternation of his own federation – and been a member of Fifa’s executive committee since 2002.
Prince Ali, beaten by Blatter in the presidential vote that followed the arrest of seven Fifa officials in Zurich in May, said: "Platini is not good for Fifa. Football’s fans and players deserve better. Fifa is engulfed in scandal. We must stop doing business as usual. The practice of back-room, under-the-table deals must end. I believe that the voices of the individual football federations must be heard. In the coming week, I will be consulting with them about what is in the best interests of football. What is clear is that Fifa needs new, independent leadership, untainted by the practices of the past."
Prince Ali and South Korea’s Chung Mong-joon, a former Fifa vice-president, are expected to run for the presidency but Platini is believed to have secured backing from the leaders of four of Fifa’s six continental confederations for the ballot on 26 February. The 60-year-old pledged "to give Fifa back the dignity and the position it deserves”. He added: "During this last half-century or so Fifa has only had two presidents. This extreme stability is something of a paradox in a world that has experienced radical upheavals and in a sport that has undergone considerable economic change. However, recent events force the supreme governing body of world football to turn over a new leaf and rethink its governance."
Greg Dyke, the FA chairman, has been quick to voice support for Michel Platini's candidacy.
