Former football player and official Michel Platini spoke out on Monday at the appeal trial in Muttenz BL on the charges against him. He defended the two million francs he was charged for his consultancy work.
03.03.2025, 09:31
03.03.2025, 15:17
SDA
According to a verbal agreement with Blatter, he would have demanded the amount even if Joseph Blatter had no longer been Fifa President, said Platini. After all, it was not Blatter who owed him the money, but the world football association.
"If Fifa had refused to pay, I would have gone to court - a word is a word," said the defendant during questioning in court.
Blatter had initially made him the offer of one million francs. Due to Fifa's financial situation, around a year after this agreement, Blatter offered him the same contract as the general secretary, namely 300,000 francs. But with the promise that he would pay him the promised amount later as soon as Fifa had enough money.
"I knew that FIFA would pay me sooner or later," Platini continued. He did not discuss the bill with Blatter afterwards.
In 2011, Platini invoiced Fifa for four tranches of 500,000 each for his consultancy work between 1998 and 2002, as can be seen from the document in the indictment from the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland.
