Sepp Blatter stepping down, says FIFA needs ‘profound overhaul’

(CNN) FIFA President Sepp Blatter will step down as head of world soccer’s governing body but only after the organization’s executive committee organizes a fresh vote “for the election of my successor,” he said Tuesday.

Blatter did not say when the election would be held but said it should before the next World Congress in May 2016. It cannot be held for at least four months, according to FIFA rules, said Domenico Scala, chairman of FIFA’s audit and compliance committee.

“The expectation is that this could take place anytime from December of this year to March of next year,” he said.

Speaking in Zurich, Blatter said the reforms he has tried to implement over the years have not been enough.

“I felt compelled to stand for re-election, as I believed that this was the best thing for the organization. That election is over, but FIFA’s challenges are not. FIFA needs a profound overhaul,” he said.

He continued, “While I have a mandate from the membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football — the fans, the players, the clubs, the people who live, breathe and love football as much as we all do at FIFA.”

Michel Platini, president of UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, has criticized Blatter in the past and told reporters last week that he had asked Blatter to bow out of the elections. He was one of the first to react to the announcement: “It was a difficult decision, a brave decision, and the right decision.”

David Gill, vice chairman of England’s Football Association, which voiced its support for Blatter’s opposition in last week’s election, said he welcomed Blatter’s resignation as “a major step forward for FIFA on the road to proper reform.”

Gill, who resigned from FIFA’s executive committee after Blatter was re-elected Friday, said he will consider returning to the post now that Blatter is no longer at FIFA’s helm. He never formally confirmed his resignation, he said.

“I simply could not countenance serving on the FIFA executive committee alongside Mr Blatter. I respect his decision but am pleased he is standing aside and by the clear determination for real change within FIFA. This in turn allows me to reconsider my position.”

Read Blatter’s entire speech

Blatter won a fifth term Friday despite a week marred by arrests, investigations in the United States and Switzerland and questions about whether he was the man to rebuild FIFA’s reputation.

Blatter failed to get the required 140 votes in the first round of voting to prevail. Another round of voting was called, and because Blatter would need only a simple majority to win the second, his rival, Jordan’s Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, conceded.

The prince initially did not say whether he is planning to run for the seat Blatter will vacate and told CNN he was at the disposal of all of soccer’s “national associations who want a change, including many of them who were afraid to do so before this day.”

In a follow-up interview, he said, “I have to talk to our national associations and see how they feel about this. I think it’s a bit early, but definitely, if they want me to do it, I will do it.”

Asked his reaction to Blatter’s annoucement, he replied, “It is the right move for Sepp Blatter, and I think we have to look to the future. … We have to bring back FIFA to being a service organization, not a company, not anything else.”

Former FIFA presidential candidate Luis Figo called Tuesday a “good day for FIFA and football.”

“Change is finally coming,” the former Portugal star player said. “Now we should, responsibly and calmly, find a consensual solution worldwide in order to start new era of dynamism, transparency and democracy in FIFA.”

Figo didn’t say whether he would run again or not.

Blatter will continue his duties until a new president is elected, he said Tuesday.

Normally, the FIFA president is elected at the organization’s World Congress, the next one being scheduled in Mexico City on May 13.

Waiting until then to elect new leadership “would create unnecessary delay and I will urge the executive committee to organize an extraordinary congress for the election of my successor at the earliest opportunity.”

Who is Sepp Blatter?

In the meantime, not being a candidate will allow him “to focus on driving far-reaching, fundamental reforms that transcend our previous efforts. For years, we have worked hard to put in place administrative reforms, but it is plain to me that while these must continue, they are not enough.”

Among those reforms are “integrity checks” for all executive committee members, term limits for the president and executive committee members, and a requirement to elect executive committee members, Blatter said.

“I have fought for these changes before and, as everyone knows, my efforts have been blocked. This time, I will succeed,” Blatter said.