Ginola plans to challenge FIFA boss Blatter

London - Former France international David Ginola is set
to announce Friday that he wants to stand against
incumbent Sepp Blatter for the presidency of FIFA,
several British media outlets reported Thursday.
The ex-Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur player
is expected to confirm his wish to challenge Blatter
during a news conference in London, with bookmaker
Paddy Power and Twitter-based campaign changeFIFA
among his supporters.
However, doubts remain whether Ginola will in fact be
allowed to stand given a FIFA rule requiring presidential
candidates to have played an active role in football
administration for two of the past five years and be
publicly nominated by five member associations --
something many observers feel Ginola has little chance
of achieving.
Also, Paddy Power has become notorious in Britain for
high-profile publicity stunts.
But should Ginola, 47, be serious, he is in line to
become the third candidate to confirm he is standing
following fellow Frenchman Jerome Champagne, a former
FIFA executive, and Jordan's Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein, a
FIFA vice-president.
Veteran Swiss administrator Blatter is set to announce in
the next fortnight that he will be seeking a fifth term as
FIFA president and he is widely expected to remain as
the head of world football's global governing body.
However, a spokeswoman for Ginola was quoted by the
BBC as saying: "We will be looking for the full support of
UEFA (European football's governing body) and five
football associations."
After moving to England in 1995, Ginola -- who had
made his name with Paris Saint-Germain -- played for
several Premier League clubs, notably Tottenham and
Newcastle, as well as Aston Villa and Everton.
Renowned for his model good looks and flowing hair, as
much as his football skill, Ginola -- capped 17 times by
France -- was named England's Footballer of the Year in
1999, the same year he helped Spurs win the League
Cup.
Since retiring as a player, Ginola has worked as an actor
and model but has retained an interest in football as a
television pundit and through involvement with clubs in
Asia and France.
He also campaigned for England's unsuccessful bid to
stage the 2018 World Cup, which attracted a mere two
votes in the 2010 ballot of FIFA members that awarded
the tournament to Russia.
Courtesy: news24
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