Federation Internationale de Football Association president Blatter says he was near death in hospital

Without specifying his illness, Sepp Blatter said in excerpts from a television interview that he was near death when hospitalized for stress-related problems this month.

“I was close to death”.

Describing the pressure as “enormous”, Blatter said that he remained psychologically strong which is why he was able to overcome the situation, Sport24 reported.

The Fifa president, who is facing a multi-year ban from football and is now serving a 90-day provisional suspension, spent several days being treated for stress before being discharged from hospital a week and a half ago. “At a few stage the body says “no, enough is enough”.

Parts of the interview were released ahead Wednesday’s full broadcast.

Swiss prosecutors have accused him of making a dishonest payment of £1.3 million to Uefa president Michel Platini.

Blatter repeated his legal defense that a verbal agreement for Platini to receive the money was a valid contract in Swiss law.

And on Saturday, the world game’s governing body published a statement confirming that the final reports on both Blatter and Platini had been submitted.

Despite also serving a 90-day Federation Internationale de Football Association suspension, Platini is still in the running to succeed Blatter as Federation Internationale de Football Association president when the election is held in February.

The pair maintain their innocence and say the payment was for work Platini did a decade prior to the payment being made. While backing Platini, Blatter insisted that the former is an “honest man” and that if he comes back he would surely get elected.