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Ex-Fifa president Blatter and ex-Uefa chief Platini charged with fraud

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Former Fifa officials Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini have been charged with fraud and other offences in Switzerland.

Swiss prosecutors say Mr Blatter unlawfully arranged a transfer of two million Swiss francs ($2.19m) to Mr Platini in 2011.

Prosecutors say the payment “damaged Fifa’s assets and unlawfully enriched Platini”.

Mr Blatter and Mr Platini now face trial at a court in Bellinzona.

The case was opened in September 2015 after Fifa, football’s world governing body, was dogged by accusations of widespread corruption.

Fifa’s ethics committee launched an investigation, which saw both men banned from the game and forced to leave their positions.

Both Mr Blatter, 85, and Mr Platini, 66, have denied any wrongdoing.

The Swiss case centres on a request for payment for advisory work Mr Platini did for the then-Fifa president Mr Blatter between 1998 and 2002.

Prosecutors said Mr Platini demanded the payment “over eight years after the termination of his advisory activity”. “With Blatter’s involvement, Fifa made a payment to Platini in said amount at the beginning of 2011,” the prosecutors said.

They said Mr Blatter and Mr Platini have both been accused of fraud, misappropriation, criminal mismanagement and forgery of a document.

But Mr Blatter said the payment to Mr Platini was based on a verbal agreement and had been delayed because Fifa was not able to pay the entire amount at the time.

Mr Blatter said the payment had been approved by “all responsible Fifa bodies” and that Mr Platini had paid tax on the amount “at his Swiss place of residence”.

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