Ex-FIFA boss Blatter and his heir apparent Platini cleared of wrongdoing in Swiss trial

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Ex-FIFA boss Blatter and his heir apparent Platini cleared of wrongdoing in Swiss trial

4:50 CAT | 15 Jul 2022

Michel Platini, left, and Sepp Blatter arrive at Federal Criminal Court, in Bellinzona, Switzerland, on July 8. [Photo: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP]

Sepp Blatter, the man who ran global soccer’s governing body for 17 years before being ejected amid scandal, was acquitted of criminal charges by Switzerland’s top criminal court.

The ex-FIFA president and his former heir apparent, Michel Platini, were found not guilty of fraud, embezzlement and forgery over a payment of 2 million Swiss francs ($2.1 million) that was made to Platini years after he stopped working as a consultant to the World Cup organizer.

Both men said the payment fulfilled a verbal contract between them for services Platini provided, but had been delayed in part because of the parlous state of the football governing body’s finances. Once the most powerful men in soccer, the two were banned from the sport in December 2015, scuttling Platini’s chances of becoming FIFA president.

“The truth has come to light during this trial and I deeply thank the judges of the tribunal for the independence of their decision,” Platini said in a statement following the ruling.

Blatter, 86, argued before the trial that the money was “a wage payment that was due” to Platini and “was correctly declared” as such, “billed accordingly and approved by all responsible FIFA authorities.” His spokesman didn’t immediately respond to a message for comment on the verdict.

Platini was awarded damages of 142,893 francs and had nearly 2.23 million francs in a confiscated account returned to him. Blatter was awarded damages of 82,198 francs, and a further 20,000 francs in compensation.

Swiss prosecutors tried but failed to convincingly make the argument that the the belated payout to the legendary French international midfielder, by then the head of the European soccer federation UEFA, was “made without a legal basis.”

Despite Friday’s court victory, Blatter is still covered by a separate ban until 2028 concerning “extraordinary bonuses” of 23 million Swiss francs he received for the 2010 and 2014 World Cups.

During the trial in the eastern city of Bellinzona, Platini railed against how he had been treated by FIFA and made allusions to that in his post-trial statement.

“In this case, there are culprits who did not appear during this trial. Let them count on me, we will meet again,” he said. “Because I will not give up and I will go all the way in my quest for truth.”

Source: Bloomberg