Governing Bodies
I am innocent, Ex-FIFA chief Blatter tells court
Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter said he was innocent when he appeared in a Swiss court on Monday alongside France soccer great Michel Platini, 2-1/2 years after they were both cleared of fraud.
Blatter and Platini were acquitted in 2022 at a lower Swiss court following a seven-year investigation into a payment of 2 million Swiss francs ($2.22 million) to Platini.
The Swiss federal prosecutor has appealed against that decision, leading to a new hearing at the Extraordinary Appeals Chamber of the Swiss Criminal Court in Muttenz, near Basel.
The prosecutor asked for the judgment to be set aside in full.
Blatter told the court on Monday he was not guilty of fraud.
“When you talk about falsehoods, lies and deception, that’s not me. That didn’t exist in my whole life,” he said.
“We had principles in my family – we take only money we have earned,” he added. “I am innocent.”
The 2022 indictment accused Blatter and Platini of deceiving FIFA staff in 2010 and 2011 about an obligation for world soccer’s ruling body to pay the Frenchman, who was president of the sport’s European governing body UEFA at the time.
“They falsely claimed that FIFA owed Platini, or that Platini was entitled to, the sum of 2 million Swiss francs for advisory work. This deception was achieved through repeated untruthful claims made by both accused parties,” the indictment said.
The case wrecked Platini’s hopes of eventually succeeding Blatter, who resigned from FIFA in 2015 following a separate corruption scandal.
Blatter and Platini were suspended from football in 2015 by FIFA for ethics breaches, originally for eight years, although their exclusions were later reduced.
The pair were cleared in the 2022 case after a judge accepted that their account of a “gentlemen’s agreement” for the payment was credible. The judge also said serious doubts existed about the prosecution’s allegation that it was fraudulent.
The Swiss federal prosecutor is seeking a sentence of 20 months, suspended for two years, against Blatter and Platini, the former France soccer captain and manager.
‘WITCH HUNT’
Blatter, who was FIFA president for 17 years until 2015, said before the hearing that he felt he was the subject of a witch hunt.
“We did nothing wrong, nothing,” the frail-looking 88-year-old told reporters outside the court at the end of the first day’s hearing.
Platini, three times European Footballer of the Year, denied the accusation of fraud “100%,” the 69-year-old’s lawyer said.
“The court of first instance was right to find that the disputed payment of 2 million francs was lawful,” Platini’s lawyer Dominic Nellen said.
Platini told the court that he had a contract agreed to work for four years as an advisor to Blatter between 1998 and 2022. He was not paid immediately because Blatter said FIFA lacked the funds to pay him at that time.
Platini invoiced FIFA for the 2 million francs payment in 2011.
“I knew that FIFA would pay me what it owed sooner or later,” Platini told the court. “When FIFA asked me to make an invoice, for me it was simple.
“It was 500,000 multiplied by 4 years, that’s 2 million. I made an invoice and ten days later I was remunerated, and I paid my taxes on it.”
Platini said the payment related to back pay and nothing else.
“There’s no corruption, there’s no swindling, there’s nothing at all,” he told reporters outside the court.
A verdict is expected on March 25.
-Reuters
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World football governing body, FIFA, today clocks its 122nd anniversary, celebrating more than a century of overseeing and expanding the global game.
Founded on May 21, 1904, in Paris, France, FIFA began with just seven member associations — France, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
From that modest beginning, the organisation has grown into the most influential sports governing body in the world, with 211 member associations spread across all continents.
Over the decades, FIFA has transformed football into a truly global phenomenon through competitions such as the FIFA World Cup, Women’s World Cup, Club World Cup, youth tournaments, and developmental programmes aimed at growing the game worldwide.
The organisation has also witnessed remarkable milestones, including the expansion of the men’s World Cup from 13 teams in 1930 to 48 teams beginning from the 2026 edition to be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
FIFA’s journey has equally reflected football’s growing influence beyond sport, with the game becoming a major tool for diplomacy, social inclusion, youth empowerment, and economic development across the world.
As FIFA celebrates 122 years of existence, attention is now focused on the future of the game, technological innovations, expanded competitions, women’s football growth, and the continued globalisation of football.
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UEFA has issued a lifetime ban to Petr Vlachovsky, a Czech women’s soccer coach who secretly filmed his players, the governing body announced on Tuesday.
Czech media reported that the coach was convicted in May 2025 and initially received a suspended one-year prison sentence and a five-year domestic coaching ban for filming FC Slovacko’s players in changing rooms, the youngest of whom was 17.
In a statement, UEFA’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) said it had decided to ban Vlachovsky “from exercising any football-related activity for life” following the appointment of an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector to investigate allegations of potential misconduct.
“The CEDB further decided to request FIFA to extend the abovementioned ban on a worldwide level and to order the Football Association of the Czech Republic to revoke Mr Petr Vlachovsky’s coaching licence,” the statement added.
FC Slovacko did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Football players’ union FIFPRO welcomed the ban as well as UEFA’s request for world soccer governing body FIFA to impose an international ban on Vlachovsky.
“This outcome sends a strong and necessary message that abusive and inappropriate behaviour has no place in football and that safeguarding the well-being of players must remain a priority at every level of the game,” FIFPRO added in a statement.
Vlachovsky had also previously served as coach of the Czech women’s Under-19s team.
RELATED STORY: https://sportsvillagesquare.com/2026/04/08/outrage-as-male-coach-who-secretly-filmed-women-players-still-free-to-work-in-football/
-Reuters
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Southampton have been kicked out of the Championship playoff final after being found guilty of spying on semi-final opponents Middlesbrough, the English Football League said on Tuesday.
Middlesbrough, who lost 2-1 to Southampton on aggregate in the semi, have been reinstated and will face Hull City on Saturday in what is dubbed the world’s richest soccer match.
Promotion to the Premier League, even with an immediate relegation, is estimated to be worth in the region of 200 million pounds ($268.10 million) over three seasons.
Southampton, who admitted the charges, were also found guilty of filming training sessions involving Oxford United in December and Ipswich Town in April during the regular season.
They have also been deducted four points from the start of next season in England’s second tier.
“An Independent Disciplinary Commission has today expelled Southampton from the Championship play-offs after the club admitted multiple breaches of EFL regulations related to the unauthorised filming of other clubs’ training,” the EFL said.
“Southampton admitted breaches of Regulations requiring Clubs to act with the utmost good faith and prohibiting the observation of another Club’s training session within 72 hours of a scheduled match.
“The effect of today’s order is that Middlesbrough are reinstated into the 2026 play-offs and will proceed to the play-off final against Hull City. The final remains scheduled for Saturday 23 May, with the kick-off time to be confirmed.”
The EFL confirmed that Southampton could appeal against the decision and that “parties are working to try and resolve any appeal on Wednesday 20 May.
“Subject to the outcome, it could result in a further change to Saturday’s fixture,” the statement said.
‘BORO CALLED FOR SOUTHAMPTON EXPULSION
Middlesbrough had called for Southampton’s expulsion after having a training session at their Rockliffe Park site filmed 48 hours ahead of the first leg of their playoff semi-final with Southampton which ended 0-0.
The north-east club said they welcomed the decision.
“We believe this sends out a clear message for the future of our game regarding sporting integrity and conduct,” the north Middlesbrough said in a statement.
“As a club, we are now focused on our game against Hull City at Wembley on Saturday.”
Southampton were relegated from the Premier League last season and were struggling in the early part of this campaign until a storming finish in which they went unbeaten in 19 league games to finish fourth and enter the playoffs.
The south-coast club are the first to fall foul of the Football League’s regulation 127 — brought in after Leeds United were found guilty of spying on Derby County seven years ago, an offence for which they were fined 200,000 pounds.
-Reuters
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