Gianni Infantino wins FIFA presidential election

Gianni Infantino talks after being elected as the new FIFA President during the Extraordinary FIFA Congress at Hallenstadion on February 26, 2016 in Zurich, Switzerland.

The world game’s governing body launched a new era on Friday when Gianni Infantino was elected as Blatter’s successor.

The election was due to be fought between five candidates, but South African Tokyo Sexwale withdrew before voting began in Zurich.

A second round of voting to select Fifa’s next president was underway earlier this evening after no candidate was elected outright in the first round.

A simple majority of more than 50 per cent – 104 votes – was sufficient for victory in the second round.

In the second ballot, his supporters moved to Infantino’s column, allowing the European to triumph over the Asian confederation’s president. Sheikh Salman has been alleged of human rights violations and also vote buying in the past.

“We will restore the image of Fifa and the respect of Fifa and everyone in the world will applaud us”, Infantino told Friday’s Fifa Congress after his election.

Infantino owed his candidacy to the fact that Europe’s preferred candidate, his former boss and Uefa president Michel Platini, was banned from football previous year along with Blatter for ethics violations.

In an interview with the Associated Press news agency, Blatter said a weight was lifted off him at one minute past six on Friday evening when he watched on television as Infantino won the election to replace him.

Sheikh Salman, who had been viewed as the favourite to succeed Blatter, received 88 votes, while Prince Ali of Jordan got four, and Jerome Champagne of France had zero.

In 1998, Blatter defeated Sweden’s UEFA president Lennart Johansson having also secured the support of Africa. They were just three votes apart in the first round. “With his experience, expertise, strategic and diplomatic skills he has all the qualities to continue my work and to stabilize Federation Internationale de Football Association again”, he said.

“Gianni has got a very heavy responsibility on his shoulders… and he needs many people to side with him”.

In his campaign, he said he wanted to give $5 million every four years to each member association and $40 million to each of the six continental confederations.

On who his general secretary would be, Infantino said: “We don’t need to talk about that today because it will be the decision of the FIFA Council following the new statutes”.