PARIS — Chung Mong-Joon says he will run for FIFA president, pledging to help the governing body clean itself up if he gets elected.
Speaking at a news conference in Paris on Monday, the South Korean said "it is my privilege and honor to announce my candidacy," before quickly turning his sights on long-serving president Sepp Blatter.
After 17 years as FIFA president, Blatter said on June 2 he was standing down, under pressure from American and Swiss federal investigations of widespread corruption implicating senior FIFA officials.
Chung, a FIFA honorary vice president, promised to be a "crisis manager and a reformer" should he win the election on Feb. 26.
UEFA President Michel Platini has already declared his candidacy and is widely favored to replace Blatter.