Former UEFA president Michel Platini is suing FIFA and its president, Gianni Infantino, over corruption claims from 2015. He says this case stopped him from becoming the head of world football.
The 70-year-old ex-France captain has filed a criminal complaint in French courts. He accuses Infantino, former FIFA legal director Marco Villiger, and former audit committee chair Domenico Scala of malicious prosecution.
According to BBC Sport on Tuesday, Platini is also seeking money from FIFA in a civil case. He claims there were efforts to block him from becoming FIFA president before the 2016 election.
Platini was UEFA president from 2008 to 2015 and was seen as the favorite to take over from Sepp Blatter as FIFA president. But his campaign fell apart after he and Blatter were linked to a payment of 2 million Swiss francs (£1.6m) made to Platini in 2011.
This payment, which Blatter reportedly approved, later became key in a corruption investigation that shook world football. The scandal led to Blatter's resignation and ended Platini's chances of becoming president. Platini was banned from football for eight years by FIFA’s ethics committee, but this was later cut to four years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Both Platini and Blatter faced criminal charges in Switzerland, but a Swiss federal criminal appeals court cleared them of corruption in March 2025.
Infantino, who was UEFA general secretary under Platini, became FIFA president after Blatter. BBC Sport says it has reached out to FIFA for a comment.
Drop your comment
No comments yet — be the first to drop the gist 👇