Blatter should quit FIFA now, says old foe Johansson

By Mike Collett BERLIN (Reuters) - Sepp Blatter should leave FIFA immediately because he must have known about the $10 million (£6.5 million) payment sent to the disgraced Jack Warner from a FIFA account, Blatter's old foe and former UEFA chief Lennart Johansson said on Friday. "I think that he (Blatter) must go immediately," the Swede told reporters on the eve of the Champions League final. "I think the FBI investigators have told him they will find out exactly what was done and by whom. "The general secretary (Jerome Valcke) was sending away millions of dollars to America and Blatter claims that he didn't know? "He knows everything that's going on -- so don't believe that." Regarding Johansson's allegations, a FIFA spokeswoman said: "We have no comments on personal statements." Valcke, who has been secretary general since 2007, said on Wednesday he was not guilty of any corrupt practice in the $10 million bank transaction under investigation by U.S authorities and saw no reason to stand down. FIFA said in a statement on Tuesday that Valcke had no role in the payments, which were authorised by the chairman of FIFA's Finance Committee. Argentina's Julio Grondona, who died last year, was chairman of the committee at the time of the payments. Johansson knows exactly how FIFA works because he sat on the powerful executive committee as a vice-president from 1990 until 2007 during his 17 years as UEFA president. He also had a very close working relationship with Blatter during that time, with the Swiss serving as FIFA's secretary until 1998 when he became president. CASH BRIBE According to documents in the public domain the money was sent from FIFA to an account controlled by Warner, the former FIFA vice-president from Trinidad & Tobago, following a request to FIFA secretary general Valcke from the South African FA. Chuck Blazer, Warner's former general secretary in the CONCACAF confederation, has testified in court that the cash was a bribe for their votes for South Africa to host the 2010 World Cup. After winning a fifth term as FIFA president last Friday, Blatter announced four days into his new mandate, after a letter with details of the $10 million payment was made public, that he was stepping down as president of world soccer's governing body. That sent shockwaves through the football world with the FBI, according to media reports, now preparing to investigate Blatter and Valcke as part of its probe into a $150 million corruption scandal involving FIFA officials. Johansson, 85, lost to Blatter in the 1998 presidential election by 111 votes to 80 and the Swede said on Friday that enough was now enough as far as Blatter was concerned. "He knows everything. He knows about the cash, in and out. This is so much money. He keeps everything under such tight control and he knows about it. It is nonsense to think he doesn't and because of that he should go." Johansson ran Blatter closer than Prince Ali did in their election battle 17 years ago when the two fought to fill the chair vacated by the retired Joao Havelange. For much of the election campaign Johansson was regarded as the favourite. "I fought him for 20 years and then he bluffed me in '98 and everyone knows how," Johansson said. "I was not very optimistic about it as he's very intelligent and he knows his market." Blatter has said he was not the "high-ranking FIFA official" mentioned in the U.S. indictment which authorised the payment to Warner saying: "Definitely that's not me." Warner resigned from FIFA in 2011 following a cash-for-votes scandal related to former Asian Confederation president Mohamed Bin Hammam's campaign for the FIFA presidency. (Editing by Ken Ferris)