FIFA incapable of change from within – Spanish league chief

The president of the Spanish league Javier Tebas believes FIFA needs a complete clear out of senior personnel if the disgraced organisation is to regain the trust of the football community.

A corruption scandal engulfing world football’s governing body has seen outgoing president Sepp Blatter, secretary general Jerome Valcke and UEFA president Michel Platini suspended for 90 days.

FIFA also confirmed investigations are ongoing into eight other officials on Wednesday, including German legend Franz Beckenbauer and FIFA vice-president and head of the Spanish football federation Miguel Angel Villar Llona.

Platini and president of the Asian Football Confederation, Bahrain’s Shaikh Salman, are among those to have put their names forward to replace Blatter when a new president is elected on February 26.

“If there is to be a cultural change it can’t be carried out by people that have held roles within this system,” Tebas said on Thursday.

“I think there are people within football that can change this, but the president of the Asian confederation or Platini, who have been in this system can’t change it to one of transparency.”

Tebas has had a long-running battle with Villar Llona for control of Spanish football and repeated his jibe that the latter would have to have been “very crafty or very stupid” to not know what been going on at FIFA.

“Both options make him not the right man to lead Spanish or world football,” he added.