Michel Zen-Ruffinen

Swiss football administrator and lawyer

Michel Zen-Ruffinen

Secretary General of FIFA
In office 1998–2002
Preceded by	Sepp Blatter
Succeeded by	Urs Linsi

Personal details
Born	(1959-04-24) 24 April 1959 (age 65) Switzerland

Michel Zen-Ruffinen (born 24 April 1959) is a Swiss football administrator served as the Secretary General of FIFA, the international governing body of the sport from 1998 to 2002.^[1]

Zen-Ruffinen is a lawyer specializing in (sports law),^[2] and has been a respected football referee.^[3]^[4] His career at FIFA career began in 1986, and he was subsequently appointed head of its legal department by Sepp Blatter, then general secretary of the Association. He was then appointed Blatter's deputy, and became president of FIFA. He has been nominated for the post of general secretary.

On 3 May 2002, at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Federation, Zen-Ruffinen presented a report which put forward serious accusations against President Blatter.^[5] Five of the seven vice-presidents demanded that Blatter resign, but the Committee preferred that he submit a written explanation on all eight charges made against him. Soon, due to significant disagreements with FIFA leadership, Zen-Ruffinen was forced to leave his position.^[6]

In 2007, he was appointed head of the Association of Football Agents (AFA).^[7]

In 2015, he expressed his intentions to run for the FIFA post of president, but in the end decided not to run.^[8]

References

^ "FIFA General Secretaries over the years" (PDF). FIFA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 October 2012.
^ Michel Zen Ruffinen
^ WorldFootball
^ Michel Zen-Ruffinen - referee of international football matches
^ Блаттер смеется последним
^ Zen-Ruffinen to leave Fifa
^ Michel Zen-Ruffinen revient en jeu
^ Former secretary-general Michel Zen Ruffinen asked to stand for FIFA presidency