SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Former French international footballer David Ginola’s Paddy Power backed attempt to take over as FIFA president from Sepp Blatter could be scuppered by the sporting body’s election candidate rules.
Ahead of Thursday’s presidential election candidate deadline, FIFA issued a candidate guideline and ethics code for entry
One regulation, designed to protect the integrity of football, states: “Persons bound by this code shall be forbidden from taking part in, either directly or indirectly, or otherwise being associated with betting, gambling.”
Ginola’s campaign is being organised by the bookmaker Paddy Power, which is paying the former France international £250,000 to seek the FIFA post.
When asked if the betting rule applied to presidential campaigns, a FIFA spokesman said: “It will be part of the eligibility assessment of prospect FIFA presidential candidates by the Ad-Hoc Electoral Committee in accordance with the electoral regulations.”
Ginola’s activities would only fall under the code if he gained five nominations from FIFA’s 209 national federations by Thursday.
A statement from the bookmaker read: “Both the heading and the content of the rule clearly relate to the integrity of football matches and competitions.”
