European soccer chief says 'enough is enough,' FIFA's Blatter must go

European soccer chief Michel Platini delivered an emotional plea Thursday calling on under-pressure FIFA president Sepp Blatter to quit as world soccer's governing body faced an unprecedented corruption crisis.

Platini, president of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), said Blatter was like “an uncle” to him, but “enough is enough.”

He added that he hoped that 45 or 46 of Europe's eligible 53 voting nations would vote for Jordan's Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein in Friday's ballot against Blatter who is standing for a fifth term as president.

Those votes would not be enough to topple Blatter but would send a strong signal of disapproval.

On Wednesday police officers arrested seven FIFA officials in Zurich on corruption charges while authorities in the United States issued proceedings against 18 others involved in alleged corruption involving FIFA matters.

Platini suggested UEFA could withdraw from FIFA if huge changes are not brought to world soccer's embattled governing body, but also admitted he faces something of a crisis of his own.

David Gill of England, who is joining the FIFA executive committee as the British vice-president, has said he will not take up his seat on the executive if Blatter is re-elected.

Platini said he hoped he could persuade Gill to change his mind over the next few weeks.

Platini, deemed one of the greatest footballers of all time, said he began his long relationship with Blatter in 1998 by which time he had swapped his player’s shirt to become the organizer of the 1998 World Cup in France.

"I have affection for Mr Blatter, and he always said he was like an uncle to me. But enough is enough.

"If I cannot tell him it is time to stop then who can? A true friend can tell another friend the reality."

Platini said that during an emergency committee meeting at FIFA earlier on Thursday, he told Blatter to step down.

"I said, I'm asking you to leave, FIFA's image is terrible. He said that he couldn't leave all of a sudden."

Platini added: "I'm saying this with sadness and tears in my eyes, but there have been too many scandals, FIFA doesn't deserve to be treated this way."

Platini, who decided last August to stand for re-election as UEFA president and not run for the FIFA presidency, originally was a close ally of Blatter, but was fulsome in his support of Prince Ali, who is the only candidate facing Blatter in Friday's vote.

"Prince Ali has all the legitimacy he needs, he is young, he is ambitious and that is why I support him, he can do some good, he can change things, he doesn't need money because he is a Prince," Platini told reporters at a news conference.

"A very large majority of national associations from Europe will vote for Prince Ali, and if they are to be trusted I believe he will get 45 or 46 votes from Europe. I'm trying to convince a couple who are not convinced."

FIFA's 209 members will vote on Friday with a two-thirds majority needed to win on the first ballot. If that does not happen then a straight majority is required to win a second ballot.

Asked if he realistically believed that Blatter could lose Friday's vote, Platini replied: "I think he can be beaten, yes. Before yesterday no, but after what happened yesterday, yes. Enough is enough. I think there will be a lot of changes."

Blatter chaired an emergency meeting Thursday with continental soccer bodies, while staying out of public view himself.

FIFA spokeswoman Delia Fischer says Blatter met with representatives from soccer's confederations "to discuss the current situation."

Blatter is resisting calls from UEFA to postpone Friday's FIFA presidential election by six months. He is also avoiding appearing in public.

Blatter missed giving a scheduled speech to open a session of FIFA's medical conference in a Zurich hotel — his third skipped public appearance within 24 hours.

Reuters