Sepp Blatter resigns as Fifa president

Sepp Blatter has announced he will step down as president of Fifa, calling an extraordinary congress “as rapidly as possible” at which a successor will be selected.

The Swiss announced his decision at a hastily-arranged press conference on Tuesday after his secreatry-general Jerome Valcke had earlier been implicated in the US Department of Justice’s investigations into a $10m payment to indicted former Fifa vice-president Jack Warner.



“I have thoroughly thought about my presidency and the 40 years Fifa has played in my life. I love Fifa more than anything else and I only want to do the best. I decided to stand again for election for the good of football,” he told the gathered media.

“My mandate does not appear to be supported by everybody. This is why I will call an extraordinary meeting.

“I will organise extraordinary congress for a replacement for me as president. I will not stand. I am now free from the constraints of an election. I will be in a position to focus on profound reforms. For many years we have called for reforms. But these are not sufficient.

“We need a limitation on mandates and terms of office. I have fought for these changes but my efforts have been counteracted.”

Blatter has been president since 1998, and was re-elected for a fifth term only four days before his resignation