LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Luis Figo is dropping out of the election for president of FIFA, saying the May 29 ballot is “not a normal electoral act.”
The Portugal great and former FIFA world player of the year says in a statement sent to The Associated Press that he refuses to go along with an election process that is designed “for the delivery of absolute power to one man” — indicating Sepp Blatter.
Figo’s announcement came hours after another candidate, Dutch soccer federation president Michael van Praag, also withdrew.
Figo said during campaigning he encountered hypocrisy among federation presidents around the world, and that people who wanted to speak out had been silenced. He gave no names.
He said FIFA was “living under a dictatorship” with Blatter, whose re-election is widely expected.
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