Fifa presidency: Five candidates confirmed for 26 February election

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Sepp Blatter has been president since 1998Image source, Getty Images

Fifa has confirmed that five candidates will battle for the presidency of football's world governing body when voting takes place on 26 February.

Those five are Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al-Khalifa, Gianni Infantino, Tokyo Sexwale and Jerome Champagne.

The election, prompted by Sepp Blatter's decision to stand down amid a growing corruption scandal at Fifa, will be held in Zurich.

Blatter has been in charge since 1998.

Sheikh Salman, head of the Asian Football Confederation, and Infantino, the Uefa general secretary, are seen as the frontrunners.

Uefa president Michel Platini was the early favourite to succeed Blatter but was banned from football for eight years by Fifa's ethics committee.

The Frenchman has taken his case to Fifa's appeals committee and is expected to go to the Court of Arbitration for Sport if that fails.

Candidates:

Age: 45

Nationality: Italian/Swiss

Current position: Uefa general secretary (since 2009)

Previous positions: Joined Uefa in 2000 as a lawyer and secretary general of the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) at the University of Neuchâtel

Tokyo Sexwale

Age: 62

Nationality: South African

Current position: Mining tycoon

Previous positions: Anti-apartheid campaigner (jailed for 13 years on Robben Island), former government minister, member of Fifa anti-discrimination task force, South Africa Apprentice presenter

Prince Ali bin al-Hussein

Image source, BBC Sport

Age: 40

Nationality: Jordanian

Current position: President of Jordan Football Association and founder and president of the West Asian Football Federation.

Previous positions: Former Fifa vice-president

Jerome Champagne

Age: 57

Nationality: French

Current position: Consultant in international football

Previous position: A former diplomat, he worked for Fifa for 11 years as an executive and an advisor to president Sepp Blatter, before leaving in 2010

Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al-Khalifa

Image source, BBC Sport

Age: 50

Nationality: Bahraini

Current position: Asian Football Confederation president and Fifa vice-president

Previous position: Former head of Bahrain FA

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