Joseph Blatter and Michel Platini spoke out for the first time on the second day of the FIFA scandal – and denied all allegations.
Michel Platini got emotional. Shortly after Joseph Blatter had vehemently denied the allegations in the joint process, the accused former UEFA boss leaned forward in his gray chair. “What FIFA did to their president and me is a scandal. I was called an account forger and a money launderer,” said the 66-year-old Frenchman. “The aim was for everyone to know that I shouldn’t become FIFA President. There is justice in life and I hope that it will come out.”
Blatter and Platini complain about media prejudice
On the second day of the trial before the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, Switzerland, the two former top football officials were questioned for the first time. Blatter’s statement was actually scheduled for Tuesday. However, the 86-year-old saw himself for health reasons unable to make a statement.
On Wednesday, both complained about media prejudice and the handling of the world association with them. “I will not answer questions from FIFA because the FIFA President has never answered me since March 2016,” Blatter replied, referring to Gianni Infantino, a FIFA representative who is a private prosecutor in the case. his lawyers even completely question the role of FIFA as joint plaintiff.
Blatter speaks of “late payment of wages”
At the heart of the allegation of fraud is a payment from FIFA of two million Swiss francs to former Blatter adviser Platini in 2011. According to the indictment, Blatter unlawfully confirmed this plus social security contributions. “It’s an owed late payment of wages,” said Blatter. This went through all the necessary committees at the world association.
After his election as FIFA boss in 1998, he agreed to work with Platini, Blatter reported. He said to him: “I’m worth a million.” In what currency? “I told him for fun, pesetas, rubles or marks, you have to decide that,” reported Platini.
The money was ‘not vital’ for Platini
A contract backdated to the beginning of the year was agreed in August 1999, but only for a salary of 300,000 Swiss francs. When Platini pointed out that this was not the entire agreed sum, he said: “We’ll see about that later,” Blatter recalled. In 2011, Platini billed FIFA for the sum. Why so late? “It wasn’t vital for me,” Platini said of the payment.
Platini sat in the second row with his arms crossed as Blatter testified. A day after the 86-year-old’s interrogation was postponed due to health problems, he kept running his hands across the table as he spoke.
Blatter “shocked” by questioning
The first questioning by the public prosecutor’s office in 2015 about the allegations shocked him, Blatter recalled. “This shock has lasted seven years now, this shock is still there.” At that time he had already received the “maximum penalty” and was “outlawed” in the world. “The media have given me a criminal record,” Blatter said.
When the payment became public seven years ago, Platini’s ambitions to succeed Blatter were gone. “In 2015 I happen to be a FIFA candidate,” said the Frenchman. “It’s incredible that it’s coming up at this point.” In 2016, former UEFA General Secretary Gianni Infantino replaced Platini as the new FIFA boss.
Information probably comes from FIFA Chief Financial Officer Markus Kattner
The questioning of the former public prosecutor at the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office, Olivier Thormann, was intended to clarify, among other things, where the investigators found out about the two million payment. Thormann stated that the information came from then-FIFA Chief Financial Officer Markus Kattner in 2015, when the federal prosecutor’s office was searching FIFA headquarters in Zurich. Further testimonies are planned for Friday, the third of eleven days of the hearing.
