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Three left in Fifa race against Blatter

THE number of contenders for presidency of football’s world governing body Fifa was set at four yesterday after potential challenger Jerome Champagne announced that he hadn’t received the five nominations needed.

Incumbent Sepp Blatter, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan, Dutch FA chief Michael van Praag and former Portugal great Luis Figo are now being vetted to become formal candidates.

Champagne said that only three of Fifa’s 209 member federations had nominated him by last Thursday’s deadline.

The four contenders will now undergo integrity checks by Fifa’s ethics committee and have their nomination papers scrutinised by the oversight panel.

The election will be held on May 29 at Fifa’s congress in Zurich.

Blatter has already been in the job for 17 years, and has been criticised for making sexist remarks and alleged corruption.

All three of his challengers have pledged to overhaul Fifa, and European continental body Uefa is actively opposing Blatter.

Champagne criticised Uefa chief Michel Platini, dismissing Blatter’s opponents as his proxies in a bid by rich western European clubs’ to assert control over Fifa.

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