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Michel Platini says he won't run for FIFA president
Platini was suspended by FIFA for eight years last month
He currently heads UEFA, the governing body for European soccer
UEFA President Michel Platini told The Associated Press that he has withdrawn his name from the FIFA presidential election.
Platini is one of several high-ranking officials who has been suspended from world soccer’s governing body in recent months in connection with corruption probes.
In December, FIFA’s Ethics Committee handed Platini and FIFA President Sepp Blatter an eight-year ban from “all football-related activities.”
The committee said both bans centered around a payment of 2 million Swiss Francs from FIFA to Platini.
Both Blatter and Platini deny any wrongdoing and say they will appeal their suspensions.
“FIFA’s Ethics Committee is designed to smear my name and which today I deny its very legitimacy and credibility,” Platini said after he was suspended. “I am convinced that my fate was sealed before the hearing of December 18 and that this verdict is just a pathetic coverup for a desire to eliminate me from the world of football.”
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Platini was seen by many as a leading candidate to succeed Blatter when he announced his intention to run for FIFA president in July.
The 60-year-old was a former star player who served as captain of the French national team.
He became the head of the UEFA, the organization in charge of European soccer and the world’s leading club competition – the Champions League – in 2007.
CNN’s Matthew Knight and Tom Sweetman contributed to this report.
