|
 Chung, a former FIFA vice president and fierce critic of outgoing
president Sepp Blatter, told Reuters last month that he would enter
the race and that he would make the announcement in Europe, what he
called "the center of world football".
"Paris has been chosen as the venue for the announcement as it is
the birthplace of FIFA and the campaign is focused on reviving the
original spirit of football's governing body," Chung's office told
Reuters on Wednesday.
The 63-year-old billionaire scion of South Korea's Hyundai
industrial conglomerate is viewed as one of the favorites for the
job but faces stiff competition from Frenchman Platini, the head of
Europe's governing body UEFA.
"On Monday, Aug. 17 at 10:00am (local time) at the Shangri-La Hotel
in Paris, Dr. Chung Mong-joon, FIFA Honorary Vice President, will
formally announce his candidacy for the upcoming FIFA presidential
elections scheduled to take place on Feb. 26, 2016," a statement
from his office said on Wednesday.
It added that Chung would also hold a news conference to "set out
his vision and roadmap for reforming FIFA".
FIFA's corruption troubles came to a head in May when U.S.
prosecutors indicted nine soccer officials, most of whom had FIFA
positions, and five marketing and broadcasting company executives
over a range of alleged offences, including fraud, money-laundering
and racketeering.
FIFA announced on Tuesday it had turned to the man who helped the
International Olympic Committee out of their corruption crisis,
appointing Swiss Francois Carrard as chairman of their reform
committee.
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Blatter was re-elected for a fifth term as FIFA president on May 29,
but four days later said he would lay down his mandate amid the
world crisis in the body's history. He will stay on until the
election on Feb. 26.
Chung, who told Reuters in late July he was wary of Blatter trying
to sabotage his campaign, has been traveling the world gathering
support for his bid.
He said he received assurances of support from within CONCACAF on a
recent trip to the United States and visited China last week to
attend the East Asian Cup, a regional tournament involving the two
Koreas, China and Japan.
CONCACAF is the ruling body for football in North and Central
America and the Caribbean.
Chung, who headed the Korea Football Association from 1993 to 2009 -
during which time South Korea co-hosted the World Cup finals with
Japan - lost his seat on FIFA's executive committee in 2011 to
then-Blatter ally Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan.
(Editing by Greg Stutchbury)
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