January 26, 2007: Michel Platini Elected President of UEFA

Former France and Juventus player Michel Platini (see 1982) is elected head of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), defeating the incumbent Lennart Johansson. Platini wins in the first round of voting, just obtaining an absolute majority from the 52 national associations that voted in a secret ballot. Johansson had been president for 16 years. One of Platini’s main goals, with which Johansson disagreed, was to limit the number of Champions League places to a maximum of three per country, rather than four, starting in 2009. Only England, Spain, and Italy currently have four Champions League places, so the move would hit them, and potentially benefit voters from all the other countries. In addition, Platini wants a cost control measure that limits clubs’ playing staff salary costs to “something like 50-60 percent of turnover,” as well as to combat racism and fraud, develop UEFA’s competitions, and gain recognition of football’s special status in European law. [BBC, 1/26/2007]