The pair face charges including corruption, conflict of interest and non-cooperation, and are expected to receive length bans from the game, according to insiders. However both men vehemently deny any wrongdoing.
Platini’s lawyers said in a statement: “Michel Platini … has decided not to attend his hearing at the Fifa ethics committee on 18 December 2015 as the verdict of this ethics committee has been announced in the press last weekend by one of its spokespersons, Mr Andreas Bantel, in disregard of all fundamental rights, starting with the presumption of innocence.
“By this decision Michel Platini means to express his deepest indignation with a process he regards as solely political and intended to prevent him from standing for the Fifa presidency.”
The statement came soon after the Fifa ethics committee promised Platini a fair trial, saying: “We would like to clearly stress that the adjudicatory chamber of the ethics committee will deal with the present case in the same way as with any other procedure independently and in an unbiased manner.”
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