World Football Players' Union Welcomes Blatter's Resignation

The world football players' union FIFPro on Tuseday welcomed the decision of FIFA President Sepp Blatter to step down as a move that "creates an overdue and unique opportunity to fundamentally reform the governance of football."

"The world's professional footballers, through FIFPro, have a pivotal role to play in the structural overhaul of football. We are deeply committed to achieving this critical outcome in conjunction with all of the game's key stakeholders," the union said in a statement.

"FIFPro insists that only flawless governance will be acceptable to protect the wellbeing of the players and the integrity of the game. The reform effort will fail without the direct involvement of the players."

FIFPro is the worldwide representative organization for all professional players; more than 65,000 footballers in total. Founded on December 15, 1965, FIFPro has 58 members, 2 candidate members and 5 observers.