Football: Platini appeals against six year ban

[LAUSANNE] UEFA president Michel Platini has made a formal appeal against his six year ban from football at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the tribunal said Wednesday.

The French football legend has also asked the CAS to give a decision before the European Championships in France, which would enable him to attend if he is successful, the tribunal secretary general told AFP.

Platini and former Fifa leader Sepp Blatter were banned for six years each over a two million dollar payment made by Fifa to Platini.

The ban against the two football powerbrokers was reduced from eight years by a Fifa appeal committee on February 24. But Platini, 60, has said he wants to fight the ban further.

Blatter has said he will also appeal but the tribunal said no documents had yet been received.

"In appealing to the CAS, Michel Platini seeks to annul the decisions taken by the adjudicatory chamber of the Fifa ethics committee and by the Fifa appeal committee which lead to him being declared ineligible to take part in football-related activity at national and international level for six years," said a CAS statement.

"A CAS arbitration procedure is in progress.

"First, the parties will exchange written submissions and a panel of three arbitrators will be constituted." The panel will consider a verdict after a hearing in Lausanne.

"In theory we have four months for a verdict, but Michel Platini has asked us for a decision before the start of Euro 2016 so we will adapt to the request of the parties," CAS secretary general Matthieu Reeb said.

Platini was a key figure behind staging the European Championships in his native country and is desperate to be present when it starts in Paris on June 10.

Platini and Blatter were found guilty of conflicts of interest when Blatter approved a two million Swiss franc (US$2 million) payment to Platini in 2011 for consultancy work done without a contract a decade earlier.

He has denied any wrongdoing insisting there was an oral contract. Swiss prosecutors are investigating the payment however and Blatter, 79, is a formal suspect.

Platini had been favourite to take over from Blatter but the ban demolished his hopes.

Platini's deputy at UEFA, Gianni Infantino, won the election for the Fifa presidency on Friday. Platini hopes to keep his post at UEFA if he can win his appeal.

The Frenchman went to CAS in December when he appealled against his provisional suspension by Fifa. This was turned down.

AFP