Platini: FIFA plan illegal

12 April 2012

Michel Platini has dealt a blow to FIFA president Sepp Blatter's hopes of winning support for rules to limit the number of foreign players by declaring the plan "completely illegal".

The UEFA president said he supported Blatter's objectives and will meet him on Wednesday for further talks but under European Union law the 'six-plus-five' proposal was unworkable.

"The objectives are very good, and I have said that many times," Platini said in Moscow. "However, they are completely illegal under EU legislation."

It is understood Blatter will now use FIFA's Congress later this month to gain backing for a mandate to pursue discussion on the six-plus-five rule rather than seek a change to FIFA's laws via the Congress.

Under Blatter's plan, each starting XI must have a minimum of six domestic players and a maximum of five foreigners. He has no plans to impose limits on the number of foreign players in a squad, however.

Platini added: "I will be having a meeting with Mr Blatter before the Champions League final about how he intends to deal with this matter at the FIFA Congress at the end of the month."

UEFA believe the way forward is through their licensing system, where clubs playing in European competition must have at least four players in the 25-man squad who have come through their academy and a further four trained at an academy within the same national association.

UEFA's system has fallen within EU rules because it does not judge the players on nationality, merely where they were trained.

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