Villar, Ceferin and Van Praag announce UEFA presidential bid

Spaniard Angel Maria Villar, Slovenian Aleksandar Ceferin and Dutchman Michael van Praag submitted their candidacies for the vacant UEFA presidency.

UEFA confirmed the trio’s presidential bids on Friday, with the heads of their country’s respective football federations vying for the top job, vacated by the suspended Michel Platini.

A decision on Villar (president of the Royal Spanish Federation), Ceferin (president of Football Association of Slovenia) and Van Praag (president of Royal Netherlands Football Association) will be made at the 12th Extraordinary UEFA congress in Athens, Greece on September 14.

Europe’s football governing body is seeking a replacement for Frenchman Platini, who is serving a four-year suspension from all football-related activities for ethics violations.

All three candidates will be subject to an eligibility check, conducted by the Review Committee of FIFA due to the fact that the UEFA president automatically becomes a FIFA Council vice-president.

Meanwhile, Evelina Christillin (Italian Football Federation) and Laura McAllister (Football Association of Wales) submitted their candidacies for UEFA’s additional female member on the FIFA council.