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Aleksander Čeferin will step down as UEFA president in 2027
Photo: Christophe Ena / AP
UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin surprisingly does not want to run for another term as head of the European Football Union in 2027. The Slovenian announced this decision on Thursday after the UEFA Congress in Paris. The general assembly had previously made the way for Čeferin to run again despite the term limits by changing the statutes.
"I decided six months ago that I would not run again," said the 56-year-old, who has been in office since September 2016 as Michel Platini's successor. After a certain time, every organization needs “fresh blood”. His family knew first, he could look in the mirror with peace of mind, said Čeferin. "I'm tired of Covid, tired of two wars, of nonsense projects like the so-called Super League."
In recent months there has been some heated discussion about the changes to the statutes. Former professional Zvonimir Boban, a close advisor to Čeferin for years, resigned from his high-ranking position at UEFA in protest. The German Football Association (DFB) supported the changes to the statutes.
There was no debate about the changes
At the congress, only three out of 55 national associations voted against voting en bloc on various changes to the statutes, with one abstention. As a result, there was no deeper debate about the individual statutes. The changes themselves were approved by a large majority. »I didn't want to influence the congress in advance. “It amused me to follow this hysteria,” said Čeferin.
According to dpa information, UEFA primarily relies on a legal opinion according to which the previous wording of the statutes was not compatible with Swiss law. The umbrella organization is based in Nyon, and Ceferin was confirmed in office by acclamation last year.
kjo/dpa