Fifa, Blatter and Platini acquitted of corruption charges

Former FIFA president Joseph Blatter and former UEFA president Michel Platini were acquitted on Friday by the Swiss Federal Criminal Court in a FIFA fraud trial. The two former executives had been accused by federal prosecutors of fraud against FIFA in relation to the payment of 2 million Swiss francs (approximately 2 million euros) that Platini had received from FIFA in 2011 for a position as consultant between 1998 and 2002. Blatter, 86, chaired the governing body of world football from 1998 to 2015. “I expect nothing more than an acquittal. I am not innocent in my life, but in this case I am innocent,” said Blatter before entering the court of Bellinzona. Platini, 67, said in a statement released by his lawyer that “my fight is a fight against injustice. I won a first game”. “The truth has come to light in this trial,” he said, noting that “we will meet again” as he would “go all the way in my search for the truth” because “there are culprits who did not appear during this trial.”