UEFA chief steps down

Lars Christer Olsson has resigned as UEFA's chief executive indicating the changes that will come as Michel Platini takes a hands-on approach as the newly elected president of the association.

Before turning in his resignation, Olsson had several meetings with Platini, who has spent the last two days at UEFA headquarters in Nyon going over his plans with the senior staff.

Olsson's absence will be felt inside the department of culture, media and sport at Westminster where he backed the European Sports Review, which was designed to modernise and define the status of sport and football in European law.

In his three years as chief executive of UEFA, Olsson also started the Vision Europe project that recommended a way forward for European football.

The Premier League, which was against the European review and thought UEFA was trying to gain more control of football, will not miss him.

Platini has indicated he will take a greater role as executive president of the organisation.

Olsson was UEFA's highest management official since succeeding Gerhard Aigner in January 2004.

"I have not handed in my resignation," Olsson had previously told Expressen newspaper. "It is still unclear how things will turn out, but for the moment I am still here."

However there have been a series of meetings at UEFA's headquarters at Nyon in Switzerland this week and Olsson is expected to address UEFA employees at a staff meeting on Friday.

Immediately after Platini's win last week, Olsson was asked at a news conference about his future.

"Working in a political environment like UEFA where there are elections for the president or executive committee means you have to accept changes and work with them," he said.

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.