JOHN LEICESTER
AP Sports Writer

PARIS (AP) — The only declared candidate for the FIFA presidency says he won’t step aside if Sepp Blatter confirms before the World Cup that he’s seeking a fifth term.

In an interview with The Associated Press, former FIFA executive Jerome Champagne says trying to unseat Blatter is not a lost cause.

Champagne said “an election is an election,” adding that “we have seen a lot of underdogs and outsiders also sometimes winning.”

In 2011, Blatter was re-elected as the only candidate. He’s expected to confirm his re-election plans on June 11 in Brazil on the eve of the World Cup.

Champagne says “We need more than one candidate … We need different points of views.”

Blatter is in his 39th year at the soccer governing body, the last 16 as president.

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