European Court Justifies Platini’s Ban

Michel Platini’s ban from football “was justified” said the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) after rejecting the ex-UEFA President’s appeal.
Platini and former FIFA counterpart Sepp Blatter were found guilty in 2015 of ethics breaches over a 2m Swiss Franc (£1.3million) “disloyal payment”.
The Frenchman was initially given an eight-year ban which was eventually reduced to four on appeal.
The ECHR said the sanction “did not appear excessive or arbitrary”.
Platini, 64, resigned from his role as Uefa president in 2016 after his appeal to the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) was rejected, although the length of the sanction was reduced to four years, having already been cut to six in February that year.
However, the fine of 60,000 Swiss Francs (£33,700 at the time) remained, which Platini said, in October, he would not be paying until ECHR’s ruling had been issued.
Regarding this latest appeal to the ECHR, Platini challenged CAS’ judgement on three grounds: a right to a fair hearing, that FIFA rules had been used retrospectively against him and that the ban was excessive.
In its judgement, the ECHR said: “The court found in particular that, having regard to the seriousness of the misconduct, the senior position held by Mr Platini in football’s governing bodies and the need to restore the reputation of the sport and of FIFA the sanction did not appear excessive or arbitrary.”