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Blatter wants to extend Fifa presidency

Reuters
Tuesday 20 October 2009 11:22 BST
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The presidency will be up for debate in 2011
The presidency will be up for debate in 2011

FIFA President Sepp Blatter will seek to stay in charge of world soccer's governing body after 2011 because of the raft of new initiatives he wants to push through.

"I have not finished my mission in soccer, I need more time. I hope that in 2011 the FIFA Congress has further faith in me, otherwise I'll go back to my village," the 73-year-old Swiss told Tuesday's Gazzetta dello Sport.

Ideas to improve football include the trial of extra officials to monitor the penalty box in the Europa League and Blatter's 6+5 plan to increase the number of homegrown players at clubs, which is opposed by the European Commission.

Blatter, head of FIFA since 1998 and whose current term runs to 2011, said he had no alternative but to launch a probe into Argentina coach Diego Maradona's obscenity-filled outburst after his side reached the World Cup last week.

The late decision to use seedings for the European World Cup playoffs was widely criticised and Blatter acknowledged the situation could have been handled better.

"It should have been announced earlier. We are always learning, in 2014 we will make changes," he said.

"There are all the best teams (at the World Cup), if someone has missed out it is because they haven't deserved it."

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