Agence France-Presse
Zurich, Dec 21: The committee he created for transparency in FIFA came back to haunt Sepp Blatter as it banned him for eight years from all football activities. However, beaten but not broken, Blatter said Monday that he will appeal against the ruling by the Ethics Committee. He claimed he was ‘betrayed’ by judges who ignored evidence.
Blatter informed that he would first take his case to a FIFA appeals committee before challenging his suspension at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne.
Blatter said he was ‘astonished’ that judges rejected evidence concerning the existence of an oral contract.
“You ask me if I feel betrayed… the answer is yes,” said the Swiss national. “The Ethics Committee deny an evidence and they try to build something up which is not true… Something that is not true cannot be proven.”
Blatter also said he ‘was sorry for FIFA’, which has been engulfed in an unprecedented corruption scandal, including waves of criminal indictments targeting top officials by the United States justice department.
There is also an ongoing criminal investigation by the Swiss attorney general, of which Blatter is the main target. “As president of FIFA, I am this punching ball,” said Blatter. “I am a man of principles. These principles are never taking money you have never earned and pay your debts.”
Blatter voiced confidence in the appeals process and said he was still holding out hope that he could again be in charge in time for a FIFA Congress set for February, when his replacement will be chosen.
