JUST IN: Former UEFA president Michel Platini arrested for awarding FIFA World Cup to Qatar

Judicial sources in France have confirmed that Platini, a three-time Ballon d’Or winner and former president of European football’s governing body UEFA, has been taken in custody. The former France international captain was detained by French police on Tuesday and taken into the Anti-Corruption Office of the Judicial Police in Paris.

The 63-year-old’s arrest is in connection with an investigation into corruption surrounding how the hosting rights of the 2022 FIFA World Cup were awarded to Qatar in 2010. Of the 24 FIFA executive members who voted for the decision, including Platini, 16 have resigned, been suspended or are under surveillance.

Platini was the active UEFA president from January 2007 until December 2015 when hestepped down from the positionhaving been found guilty of an ethics violation. His initial six-year ban was reduced to four years after an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and ended in March 2019.

Source:  Reuters, AFP, SID