Criminal complaint filed against FIFA president Gianni Infantino by his former boss

Criminal complaint filed against FIFA president Gianni Infantino by his former boss Former UEFA president Michel Platini is suing FIFA and its president Gianni Infantino amid World Cup corruption allegations Former UEFA president Michel Platini is taking legal action against FIFA boss Gianni Infantino, claiming he and two others conspired against him and destroyed his prospects of securing football's top position, according to reports. City AM claim Platini's legal team have confirmed they are launching proceedings in Paris against Infantino and two ex-FIFA officials, legal director Marco Villiger and audit chair Domenico Scala. Infantino, Villiger and Scala stand accused of malicious prosecution and influence peddling in connection with an affair that ultimately brought down Platini's career in football governance. Platini was the frontrunner to succeed Sepp Blatter as FIFA president until 2015, when Blatter was effectively charged with bribing Platini to secure votes for a fourth term. Platini and Blatter were handed suspensions by FIFA's ethics committee over the two million Swiss francs "disloyal payment," but both have since been cleared by the Swiss courts. JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! Latest news, analysis and much more on Mirror Football's Facebook page The former France skipper is also pursuing FIFA for financial damages in Switzerland for what his lawyers claim was a calculated effort to prevent his succession of Blatter. Infantino, who served as UEFA general secretary under Platini, secured election to succeed Blatter in 2016 and has remained in office ever since, consolidating his authority throughout. The timing of the legal actions becoming public will cause Infantino and FIFA significant embarrassment just before the World Cup kicks off in the US, Mexico and Canada on Thursday. Mirror Sport have contact FIFA in relation to the allegations but have not yet responded to the latest developments, with Infantino set to face the media on Wednesday on the eve of the largest edition of the tournament ever staged. This comes nine months after the acquittal of Platini, now 70, and Blatter, 90, on fraud and forgery charges by a Swiss federal criminal appeals court in September that year. Get the latest World Cup news straight to your inbox by signing up to our Make Football Great Again newsletter now! Since taking office, Infantino has driven sweeping changes to FIFA's operations and significantly boosted its revenue, and last week he topped City AM's inaugural Football Power List. The news is the latest controversy in a string of events that have shrouded the build up to this summer's World Cup. The United States war with Iran has been a major talking point. Iran threatened to pull out of the tournament following airstrikes that claimed the life of their leader Ayatollah Khamenei. With Italy put forward as possible replacements, it was later mooted that Iran's fixtures could be relocated at short notice to Mexico. Throughout the uncertainty, Infantino repeatedly insisted that Iran would participate and that all would be well, while Trump issued a menacing statement, declaring: "I really don't believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety." The US President ultimately gave his lukewarm seal of approval. In the last few hours, referee Somalian referee Omar Artan has been denied entry into the United States and Iranian fans have had their tickets withdrawn in the last few hours.