PARIS: Chung Mong-joon has promised to be one-term revolutionary leader of FIFA after launching his candidacy to become the next president of the world football federation today in Paris writes KEIR RADNEDGE.

The only previously declared heavyweight had been Michel Platini, French head of European federation UEFA although old superstar Zico from Brazil and Liberian FA boss Musa Bility have also expressed an interest.

The 61-year-old scion of the Hyundai empire has said, ahead of today’s campaign launch, that FIFA needs a fresh approach after the scandal-twisted downward spiral of the last five years under Sepp Blatter.

Today he promised: “I can fix FIFA’s problems in four years. That is my pledge to football fans around the world.”

Chung is an honorary vice-president of FIFA but has been out of executive office since being ousted as Asia’s FIFA vice-president by Jordan’s Prince Ali bin Al Hussein in 2011.

He said: “It’s time to restore common sense at FIFA. The real reason it is so corrupt is that the same person has been in charge for 40 years. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

“The FIFA president must be a crisis manager and a reformer. The problem at FIFA is that those mired in corruption, the only thing they are interested in is hiding the corruption.”

Platini, a FIFA vice-president since ousting Lennart Johansson at the head of UEFA in 2007, was criticised by Chung as part of the problem, not the solution.

Chung said: “Platini is my good friend, but he does nothing to appreciate the seriousness of the current FIFA crisis.”

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