Blatter calls for foreign limit

Fifa president hoping to push through six-plus-five rule

Last updated: 27th May 2008

Sepp Blatter

Blatter: Hopeful

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Fifa president Sepp Blatter is hopeful that the 'six-plus-five' rule will be in place by the start of the 2012/13 season.

Blatter believes the number of foreign players in a starting line-up should be limited to five and has been discussing the idea at Fifa's annual congress in Sydney.

He is optimistic that by 2010/11 a quota of four homegrown players to seven foreigners will be brought in, rising to six plus five two years later.

There has also been opposition from leading clubs with large numbers of foreign-born players in their ranks and those who want free-market rules to apply to football.

However, Blatter claims the plan has the backing of key European delegates and has pointed to the Premier League's dominance in the UEFA Champions League as an example of why such a rule needs to be introduced.

Stressing that Fifa would proceed 'within the limits of the law', Blatter said: "It's to make sure that there is better balance in the competitions and not only three or four teams in a league of 18 or 20 are fighting to be the champion and all the others are just there to not be relegated.

"As (Newcastle manager) Kevin Keegan recently said: 'I can only start my season to fight to be fifth or sixth or seventh. It is impossible for me to go into the final four'.

"At the end of the Champions League in Europe you have in the quarter-finals four teams of the same association; in the semi-finals three of these teams.

"We want to bring some remedies and this is the six-plus-five rule's objective."

Convinced

Blatter is confident the proposal will be accepted when the congress votes on it later this week.

"The executive committee unanimously supported the proposed resolution concerning the six-plus-five rule," he said.

"We've had confirmation by all the confederations, including Europe, that everybody favours the objectives of the six-plus-five.

"I'm convinced, now the confederations are in favour of such a proposed solution, it is a possibility.

"But we should do it not (with) confrontation but in discussions to try and find a solution.

"We would start, step by step, with four plus seven in 2010 and then 2011 five (plus six), then 2012 six (plus five)."

Blatter added: "We've just seen Manchester United's starting XI in Moscow with six players eligible for the English team on the pitch.

"And they won. Not bad."