Publications
Partners
Paris - FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke said on Wednesday he was not guilty of any corrupt practice in a $10m bank transaction under investigation by US authorities and saw no reason to stand down.
"I have no reason to say that I shouldn't remain secretary general regarding what's happened in the last days, because I have no responsibility," he said.
"I'm beyond reproach and I certainly don't feel guilty. So I don't even have to justify that I'm innocent," he added.
Emotional speech
Meanwhile AFP reported that FIFA president Sepp Blatter received a standing ovation that lasted several minutes at the world football governing body's headquarters in Zurich on Wednesday.
The 79-year-old Swiss, who announced on Tuesday his intention to step down just four days after being re-elected for a fifth term, was said to be emotional while giving a speech to about 400 members of staff.
"He more or less said what he'd already said (on Tuesday) to the media," said a source.
"He was just normal, expressing himself to the FIFA staff. There was a long ovation lasting several minutes and Mr Blatter was emotional."
Blatter's resignation came amid a new set of corruption accusations against FIFA officials on Tuesday, following the arrest of seven senior FIFA figures last week.
An extraordinary congress is due to be held between December and March to decide a replacement for Blatter, who was only voted back into the office he has held for 17 years on Friday.
