Bin Hammam maintains innocence

Soccer: Mohamed Bin Hammam believes Fifa have already decided to find him guilty of bribery allegations but has vowed to clear his name of any wrongdoing through any means necessary.

On Friday the Asian Football Confederation president began his fight to clear his name at a two-day hearing convened by Fifa's ethics committee in Zurich.

Bin Hammam, who had been set to run against incumbent president Sepp Blatter, has been suspended from all football activity since May 29th and will vigorously contest charges of attempting to bribe members of the Caribbean Football Union at a campaign meeting in Trinidad in May.

Bin Hammam published a blog on his website today under the title 'justice will prevail', where he labelled Fifa's evidence as "weak and unsubstantiated".

The 62-year-old Qatari also labelled the evidence as "flimsy" and, despite maintaining his innocence, believes that Fifa seem likely to hand down a guilty verdict.

"I would like to thank you all for your tremendous backing and your messages of support and encouragement as we approach the concluding stage of the current case before the Fifa Ethics Committee," the statement read. "I want you all to know that my legal team and I remain confident that the case and the evidence presented against me are weak and unsubstantiated.

"They are flimsy and will not stand up to scrutiny in any court of law; that has been clear throughout this process and it remains to be so. If we believe earlier press statements made by or on behalf of different Fifa officials or those working for them, then despite the weakness of the case against me, I am not confident that the hearing will be conducted in the manner any of us would like.

"It seems likely that Fifa has already made its decision weeks ago. So, none of us should be completely surprised if a guilty verdict is returned. Following the events since my suspension, it now seems impossible, for them to say that they were wrong, although I wish they would have the courage to correct their mistake.

"Rest assured, though, that justice will eventually prevail whether through the Fifa Ethics Committee, the Court of Arbitration of Sport or if necessary, through other courts or legal proceedings in courts where we will be equal and no special privileges will be granted to either party."

Jack Warner, the Fifa vice-president who was charged along with Bin Hammam, will not face the ethics committee after Fifa dropped the investigation into him following his resignation from all football activities.

However, the cases of CFU officials Debbie Minguell and Jason Sylvester will be heard at the hearing in Zurich.