South Korea’s Chung Mong-joon says he wants to replace Sepp Blatter as FIFA’s next president.
Chung is a former vice-president of world football’s governing body and the major shareholder of the industrial giant Hyundai.
He told the BBC’s World Football programme rival Michel Platini was not the right man for FIFA.
“If I get elected, my job is not to enjoy the luxury of the office. My job is to change it,” he added.
The 63-year-old, who is worth $1.2bn (£769m) according to Forbes, continued: “It will be very difficult for Mr Platini to have any meaningful reforms. Mr Platini enjoys institutional support from the current structure of FIFA. Mr Platini is very much a product of the current system.”
Platini declared his intention to run for the 26 February election on Wednesday, though candidates have until 26 October to be nominated.
Blatter, who has run FIFA since 1998, is standing down following a series of damaging corruption allegations against the organisation.
United States and Swiss authorities have launched separate criminal investigations into corruption at FIFA, with seven top officials indicted on bribery and racketeering charges in the US.
The Football Association has confirmed it will back UEFA President Platini’s bid for election.
However Chung, who believes he has a “good chance” of winning the election, said: “It is time that FIFA had a non-European leadership.
” FIFA became a closed organisation for President Blatter, his associates and his cronies and I want to change that.”
Chung lost his FIFA vice-presidency in 2010, to Prince Ali Bin al-Hussein of Jordan – who unsuccessfully stood against Blatter in May’s presidential election.
Meanwhile, Argentina football great Diego Maradona has said he wants to fight the “mafia” behind the corruption in FIFA, but stopped short of saying he would run for president.
The 54-year-old former World Cup winner told local television channel America: “I have to fight the mafia that still remains inside FIFA. I have to fight those who have for a long time stolen from inside FIFA.”
When asked if he would run for the presidency, he said: “I really want to be in FIFA.”
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