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Blatter Appeals Suspension From Top Job at Soccer Governing Body

Platini had been the frontrunner to win the election to replace Blatter and his shrinking hopes now depend on whether he can overturn the ban through an appeal process.

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The New York Times put it had bought a replica of Blatter’s attraction from the cards.

The suspension relates to an ongoing investigation by Swiss authorities believed to center on a 2005 TV rights deal between FIFA and Jack Warner, the former president of CONCACAF, the governing body of football in North and Central America and the Caribbean, as well as an alleged “disloyal payment” to Platini.

Blatter and French football legend Platini have faced mounting pressure since Swiss prosecutors started their investigation on September 25.

Platini said on Thursday that he would appeal the ruling and, like Blatter, he has protested his innocence.

The Ethics Committee said the bans were with immediate effect “and cover all football activities on a national and global level”.

However, there is still the possibility of the ethics committee extending the ban for another 45 days.

“He has appealed. He wants to go on until the congress on 26 February and he is not giving up early”, Stoehlker told Reuters.

It also banned ex-Fifa vice-president Chung Mong-joon for six years.

A new low for football’s governing body with the suspension of its leadership.

Dyke added that if there was any finding of wrongdoing by the investigations into the bids for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups he was convinced there would have to be a re-vote.

“Someone said he was there when we were given $1.5 million each in Angola?”, said the 69-year-old Hayatou, who is from Cameroon.

Valcke, Blatter’s right-hand man for the past eight years, was suspended last month after allegations he was involved in a scheme to sell 2014 World Cup tickets at a marked-up price.

“They must act swiftly to regain credibility because you can not forever dissociate the credibility of FIFA from the credibility of football”.

UEFA’s 54 member associations will convene next Thursday in Nyon to discuss the crisis and an emergency FIFA executive committee meeting could follow in Zurich the following week.

Platini himself slammed the “farcical” Fifa ban against him and signalled that he would pursue his campaign for the leadership of the world football body.

Klaus Stohlker, Blatter’s friend and adviser, he said: “He has appealed already to FIFA’s appeal committee”.

A statement from Valcke’s lawyer, Barry Berke, says the Frenchman was the subject of “false allegations”.

“President Blatter looks forward to the opportunity to present evidence that will demonstrate that he did not engage in any misconduct, criminal or otherwise”, Blatter’s lawyer, Richard Cullen, said in a statement.

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In 2011, Hayatou, 69, was reprimanded by the global Olympics Committee’s ethics commission after he confirmed to them that he was paid by FIFA’s former marketing agency worldwide Sport and Leisure in 1995.

Associated Press FIFA President Sepp Blatter left UEFA President Michel Platini center and FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke right are engaged in conversation May 29 during the 65th FIFA Congress held at the Hallenstadion in Zurich Switzerlan