They were once the most important top officials in world football. A deep case followed, which now culminates in the trial before the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, Switzerland. The hearing begins on Wednesday, and a total of eleven hearing days are scheduled until June 22nd. Blatter will be questioned on Wednesday, followed by Platini and witnesses on Thursday.
The accused face up to five years in prison if convicted. The Swiss judiciary is responsible because both associations have their headquarters there. In Bellinzona, FIFA is acting as a joint plaintiff.
A “fictitious invoice”
The two ex-officials are accused of having deceived the world association about an allegedly outstanding claim by Platini. The money was to go towards Platini’s consulting activities from July 1998 to mid-2002. In 2010, according to the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, Platini submitted a “fictitious invoice” for two million Swiss francs and confirmed it by Blatter. The sum went from FIFA to Platini’s account in 2011, and the world association also paid 229,126 francs in social security contributions.
The Swiss federal prosecutor accuses the now 86-year-old Blatter of fraud, breach of trust and forgery. Platini deals with fraud, aiding and abetting infidelity and forgery. The authority is of the opinion that compensation of CHF 300,000 per year was contractually agreed for Platini’s consulting work. Only later did Platini ask for an additional two million francs.
The millions flowed at a time when Blatter was still fighting against the then Asian association president Mohamed bin Hamman from Qatar for his re-election. Platini, as President of UEFA, has been credited with influencing voters from Europe.
Infamous departure
The FIFA Ethics Committee recognized a conflict of interest in 2015 and suspended Blatter and Platini, initially for eight years. This penalty was later reduced, but it still spelled the end of Platini’s FIFA plans. The former French world-class footballer has been credited with ambitions to succeed Blatter at FIFA. In 2016, Gianni Infantino was elected the new president instead.
The defense of the 66-year-old Platini sees the trial as the “result of a conspiracy”. One could “show in detail that the proceedings against Mr Platini were politically motivated with the aim of preventing him from becoming FIFA President,” said Platini’s lawyer Dominic Nellen of the dpa. “We are confident that the procedure will lead to a positive result, which will demonstrate Mr. Michel Platini’s complete sincerity in this matter. The aim of this story was to eliminate him as FIFA President.”
open questions
Blatter had always rejected the allegations and said he was looking forward to the trial “with optimism”: “I hope that this story will come to an end and that all the facts will be properly processed,” he said recently. Platini granted the money and agreed verbally. “The matter was correctly accounted for as a wage payment and approved by all relevant bodies at FIFA.”
The meeting days are always scheduled in the morning, with a view to Blatter’s health. At the beginning of 2021, after an operation, he was temporarily in artificial deep sleep. It is questionable whether the unanswered questions will also be answered in the process, such as how the Swiss criminal investigators found out about the two million payment. A verdict is expected to be announced on July 8.
