Aleksander Ceferin left European football’s powerbrokers stunned on Thursday by announcing he will stand down as UEFA president in 2027 just minutes after securing the right to stay in office until 2031.
At an unusually tense UEFA Congress in Paris the FA were the only one of 55 national associations to vote against Ceferin’s controversial change to term limits, with chief executive Mark Bullingham left holding a lone red card in the air, before the president rounded on his critics.
Ceferin’s tirade was aimed at former AC Milan star Zvonimir Boban, who resigned as UEFA’s technical director in protest last month rather than Bullingham, but an extraordinary Congress was still uncomfortable for the FA.
Following weeks of talks with other national associations the FA were the only dissenting voice at Congress having opted to take a principled stance in favour of maintaining strict term limits.
Ceferin claimed he had taken the decision to stand down six weeks ago, but kept the information to his closest aides, which he claimed included Boban.
Alexander Ceferin will not stand as UEFA president beyond his current term ending in 2027
The Slovenian pictured with his wife Barbara (right) and daughter Petra (left) in August 2019
FA chief executive Mark Bullingham held up a red card opposing changes at UEFA at Congress
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‘Honestly speaking, I’m tired of Covid, I’m tired of two wars and nonsense projects of so-called Super League,’ Ceferin said.
‘I’m also tired of self-proclaimed moral authorities, who are moral just until it comes to their personal interests.
‘Now just two sentences about the self-proclaimed moral authority. He was one of the rare persons that knew that I was not going to run in 2027. The moment that he got the info that I would disclose it after Congress he went out with his narcissistic letter.
‘He could not wait because after my disclosure his whining would not make sense any more. Now think, whose personal aspirations are in question? And think, whose morality is in question?’