UEFA to elect new president on Sept. 14

By Fatih Erel

BASEL (AA) - UEFA will elect a new president this September to replace Michel Platini, who stepped down this month after being banned over ethics breaches.

After UEFA's Executive Committee met in Basel on Wednesday, UEFA interim Secretary General Theodore Theodoridis said European football's governing body will hold an extraordinary congress on Sept. 14 in Athens to elect a new president.

The congress will also serve to elect the European female member of the FIFA Council. Candidates for both elections will have until July 20 to file their candidacy paperwork, Theodoridis noted.

Meanwhile, a task force will be created to discuss how the national teams of Gibraltar and Kosovo will be integrated into the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers following their admission as member associations in FIFA, world soccer’s governing body.

Platini resigned as UEFA president after an unsuccessful attempt to end his six-year ban from football.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on May 9 lowered Platini’s suspension from six years to four from all football-related activity.

Last December, FIFA President Sepp Blatter and Platini were suspended for eight years from football-related activities following an investigation which found they had abused their positions. They were suspended over a $2 million “disloyal payment” to Platini in 2011.

In February, FIFA’s appeal committee rejected Blatter and Platini’s bids to have their eight-year bans from the sport quashed. However, their suspensions were reduced to six years. On March 2, Platini filed an appeal against this six-year ban at CAS.