By Andrew Warshaw
January 12 – Are the cracks beginning to show in Jerome Champagne’s bid for the FIFA presidency? Champagne, the former FIFA deputy general secretary regarded as an outsider even before Prince Ali bin al-Hussein announced his bid to enter the fray – even though he is the only candidate to have issued a firm election manifesto – has admitted for the first time that he may not be able to fulfil the criteria for standing.
Each candidate needs to secure five nominations from FIFA’s 209 members to take part in the election on 29 May.
Champagne has never revealed who his five nominations are and has until January 29 – the cut-off point for candidates – to obtain them.
“I would say that it’s easier to get 50 votes than five letters of support,” the Frenchman told the BBC. “There’s a lot of fear, sometimes pressure. I’m discussing with a lot of federations to get these letters. If I have five letters by 29 January I will compete and if I don’t, I will say ‘I don’t have them’.
Champagne has made no secret of the fact that he is facing an uphill struggle to dethrone Blatter, his former boss, but is too canny a figure not to have a plan up his sleeve should he lose. Speculation is rife that Blatter will bring him back on board at FIFA which he quit over a decade ago and has been working mainly as a consultant for a number of aspiring regions including Palestine, Kosovo and northern Cyprus.
“A person who is not prepared to lose an election is someone who should never run for election,” said Champagne. ” I’m not the kind of arrogant guy who said ‘I’m bound to win’.”
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