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The news of FIFA president Sepp Blatter’s resignation has shocked the footballing world, not least because the Swiss was re-elected to another four-year term within the last week.
But the pressure on Blatter became too great, amidst allegations of corruption within the organisation and reports of him being implicated in a corruption investigation.
It is still unknown why Blatter came to the decision to resign, but what is known is that his successor will be picked at the next FIFA congress, which can be held in December at the earliest.
More:
» Sepp Blatter resigns
» Blatter steps down from the circus
» Blatter under FBI investigation
» FFA welcomes Blatter’s resignation
It’s a long way off, and no one has, understandably, put their hand up to replace him
Prince Ali bin al-Hussein
The Jordanian Prince was Blatter’s only opponent at the last FIFA elections, and while he earned enough votes to take it to a second round, he pulled out of the race after that, leaving Blatter to take his sixth consecutive term at the top of football.
He promised that if his bid was unsuccessful, then he would leave FIFA, and he’s no longer a vice president of the organisation. This move by Blatter, however, may prompt him to change his mind.
Luis Figo
The former world footballer of the year has been considered a leader-in-waiting for the game for a long time.
A charismatic captain of Portugal on the pitch, and just as charismatic off it, he could be the fresh face football fans would embrace to create what Blatter labelled ‘real change’ in a new FIFA.
However, he supported Prince Ali bin al-Hussein in the last FIFA presidential election, pulling out of the race in the week leading up to the election and throwing his support behind Blatter’s main rival.
Whether he would do the same next time around remains to be seen.
Ted Howard
The current general secretary for CONCACAF, successor of Enrique Sanz in the US and Americas region, he’s considered a long shot for the presidency.
With Sanz being indicted on corruption charges, Howard took over the CONCACAF region. Whether that is a launching pad to the FIFA presidency, however, seems unlikely at this stage.
Michel Platini
The current UEFA boss has been a vocal critic of FIFA for a long time.
He has had little time or patience for the reports of corruption that swirled, and has called for those in charge to step aside.
With that finally happening in the case of Blatter, Platini has been installed as favourite to take over.
Whether federations who prospered under Blatter would give someone like Platini a mandate for change, however, is the biggest question.
Issa Hayatou
The Cameroon representative in both basketball and athletics is also a savvy administrator, and one who challenged Blatter for the FIFA presidency in 2002.
While his name has been implicated with corruption cases in the past, he is well entrenched in FIFA. A Blatter supporter nowadays, that could win him the votes of any who don’t consider radical change the way forward.
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