Platini delivers thumbs down to €50m plan for 'our competitions'

Uefa president Michel Platini remains opposed to the use of goal-line technology, which is being employed by Fifa for the first…

Uefa president Michel Platini remains opposed to the use of goal-line technology, which is being employed by Fifa for the first time at the Club World Cup. He has said the money would be better spent developing the game.

The technology was employed in last Thursday’s Club World Cup curtainraiser between Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Auckland City in Yokohama.

While Fifa president Sepp Blatter changed his mind after a series of controversial decisions in high-profile matches, Platini is not for turning.

The Frenchman, in Kuala Lumpur to sign a memorandum of Understanding with the Asian Football Confederation on co-operation, delivered a blunt “No” when asked by reporters if he would follow Blatter’s lead.

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“It is not a question of goal-line technology, it is a question of technology,” he said. “Where do you begin . . . and where do you end with the technology? To put goal-line technology in our competitions is €50 million in five years. I prefer to give the 50 million to the grassroots and development in football.”