Michel Platini is giving up his bid to become the next FIFA president. Platini told The Associated Press on Thursday that he remains determined to overturn the eight-year ban he was handed by FIFA's ethics committee last month, but that the deadline for the Feb. 26 election is too short and renders his candidacy impossible. Platini's bid to succeed Sepp Blatter and take football's top job had been put on hold because of a payment he received from his former mentor back in 2011. Blatter and Platini were banned for eight years last month for conflict of interest in a 2 million Swiss franc payment deal that is also the subject of a criminal investigation in Switzerland.
