FIFA scandal latest: UEFA want presidential election postponed after ‘disastrous’ revelations
UEFA has urged the upcoming FIFA presidential election to be postponed in the wake of Wednesday’s shock allegations of "rampant” corruption within the world governing body.
FIFA has been plunged into the most serious scandal in its history after a wave of arrests of football officials in Zurich on corruption charges.
Seven officials, including FIFA vice-president Jeffrey Webb from the Cayman Islands, were arrested by Swiss authorities on behalf of the US Department of Justice, which has indicted 18 people alleging bribery totalling more than $150million[£98million].
In a separate development, the Swiss attorney general also opened criminal proceedings over the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, seized documents and electronic data from FIFA's headquarters and will question ten current FIFA executive committee members who voted on that tournament.
The twin proceedings have cast FIFA into a state of crisis and UEFA wants Friday's presidential election between incumbent Sepp Blatter and Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan to be postponed.
UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino, speaking in Warsaw ahead of the Europa League final, said in a statement: "UEFA believes that the FIFA Congress should be postponed and that the election for the president should take place within six months."
The full UEFA statement following an executive committee meeting said: "Today's events are a disaster for FIFA and tarnish the image of football as a whole.
"UEFA is deeply shocked and saddened by them. These events show, once again, that corruption is deeply rooted in FIFA's culture. There is a need for the whole of FIFA to be "rebooted" and for a real reform to be carried out.
"The upcoming FIFA Congress risks to turn into a farce and therefore the European associations will have to consider carefully if they should even attend this Congress and caution a system, which, if it is not stopped, will ultimately kill football.
"The members of the UEFA executive committee are convinced that there is a strong need for a change to the leadership of this FIFA and strongly believe that the FIFA Congress should be postponed, with new FIFA presidential elections to be organised within the next six months."