Sepp Blatter to appeal six-year football ban

By Matt Law, Football Editor | 17 March 2016

Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter launches an appeal against his six-year football ban and will take his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter has launched an appeal against his six-year football ban.

Blatter, alongside former UEFA president Michel Platini, was handed an eight-year ban by the FIFA ethics committee last December due to allegations of a "disloyal" £1.3m payment from FIFA to Platini.

Both deny any wrongdoing, however, claiming that the payment, which was made in 2011, related to a gentleman's agreement made in 1998.

The pair successfully had two years cut from their suspensions in February, but Blatter will now take his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

"Mr Blatter seeks the annulment of the decision taken by the FIFA Appeal Committee in which he was suspended from all football-related activities at national and international level for six years," read a statement from CAS.

"First, the parties will exchange written submissions and a panel of three arbitrators will be constituted. The Panel will then issue directions with respect to the holding of a hearing.

"Following the hearing, the Panel will deliberate and at a later date, it will issue a decision in the form of an Arbitral Award."

Platini, meanwhile, launched an appeal of his own last month.