FIFA seeking life ban for Platini, say his lawyers

UEFA president Michel Platini (R) congratulates FIFA President Sepp Blatter after he was re-elected at the 65th FIFA Congress in Zurich, Switzerland, in this May 29, 2015 file photograph. [Photo/Agencies]

Platini, still determined to run in February's election for president in Zurich, has registered as a candidate but FIFA's electoral committee has said his bid cannot be processed while he is suspended.

He could be allowed back into the race if the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) accepts his appeal against the 90-day ban but could then be eliminated again if Eckert's panel hands him a long-term ban in its final verdict.

If that happens, Platini would also have to quit his role of UEFA president which he has held since 2007.

For a long time, Platini was considered the natural successor to Blatter who has weathered one crisis after another in his 17 years as FIFA president.

The FIFA scandal is one of the biggest of several corruption affairs shaking world sport. International athletics has also suffered revelations of doping, largely affecting Russia, and corrupt manipulation of anti-doping test results.

Platini was one of the most gifted players of his generation and inspired a French team which played with an exuberant Gallic flourish that delighted international audiences during the early to mid 1980s.

He went on to coach the national team, then played a key role in helping France host the 1998 World Cup before moving on to become a member of the FIFA and UEFA executive committees in 2002 and, finally, UEFA president in 2007.

The FIFA payment to Platini was made in 2011 for work Platini had completed nine years earlier, the Swiss attorney-general's office has said, adding Platini was considered "between a witness and an accused person." Platini says the payment was delayed only because of financial problems at FIFA.