UEFA Will Announce its FIFA Presidency Allegiance in May

UEFA President Michel Platini revealed yesterday, April 20, that it will decide at the beginning of May which candidate to back in the forthcoming FIFA election campaign.

Platini insisted that European soccer’s governing body had not yet decided whether to support the present incumbent or his challenger, Asian Football Confederation (AFC) chief Mohamed Bin Hammam.

Platini is expected to lobby European federations to support Blatter as the 75-year-old revealed that, if elected for a fourth term, it would be his last. The Frenchman is thought to be keen on the FIFA Presidency himself and would undoubtedly have longer to wait in his pursuit, were Bin Hammam to takeover the helm.

Platini did not say whether he had read either manifesto of the candidates after Blatter released his statement yesterday, but said UEFA would make public its decision a month before the June 1 vote in Zurich.

Platini, speaking after the official hand-over of the Champions League trophy to London ahead of next month’s final at Wembley, stated: “I will make a statement at the beginning of May about the position of UEFA.”