Michel Platini to appeal eight-year ban from all football activities

FIFA's ethics tribunal gave both Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini the reasons for its decision to ban them from football for eight years, clearing the way for them to appeal against the decision.

Michel Platini announcing he would not run for Fifa presidency and dedicate himself to clearing his name Reuters

Fifa issued a statement early Saturday, saying that the adjudicatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee had notified Joseph Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini of the grounds for the decisions passed in December 2015.

Platini’s lawyer, Thibaud d'Ales, said they would “read the reasons behind the ban, analyse them and launch an appeal on Monday (January 11).”

"After receiving the grounds for the decisions, both officials may lodge an appeal with the Fifa Appeal Committee," the statement further said. If that appeal is rejected, the two men can appeal further to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the highest tribunal in sports.

Platini, along with Fifa president Sepp Blatter, has been banned from football-related activities for eight years by the world football governing body.

Both men were found guilty of breaches surrounding a 1.8 million euro "disloyal payment" made to Platini in 2011. Platini and Blatter claimed the payment was honouring an agreement made in 1998 for work carried out between 1998 and 2002, when Platini worked as a technical adviser for Blatter.

Fifa's ethics committee said there was "not sufficient evidence" to establish the payment was a bribe, but both men demonstrated an "abusive execution" of their positions.

Blatter, who has headed Fifa since 1998, was also fined 50,000 Swiss francs (46,300 euros) while Platini, the head of Uefa, Europe's governing body, was fined 80,000 Swiss francs.

Michel Platini has given up on becoming the president of Fifa at the next election.

The Frenchman says he wants to get his eight-year ban from football overturned, but admitted that because of the upcoming deadline for the February 26 contest, he would not be able to stand as a candidate.

“I no longer have the time nor the means to go to the voters, to meet people, to fight against the other candidates,” adding he was going to dedicate himself to his defence, in order to clear his name from these "bogus" accusations.

“Everything started because of Sepp Blatter, who wanted my head, who did not want me to go to lead Fifa,” Platini said in an interview given to French sports newspaper L'Equipe.